Pain Unending
by DragonLady24
Summary: When a blind woman manages to find the Chosen's group, a certain mercenary believes he's seen her somewhere. Will they leave the past in the past or let it build a wall between them? KratosxOC I know Raine is OOC. Get over it.
1. Prologue

Me: Yes this is supposed to be short.

Prologue

Have you ever been told "live life to the fullest"? I have. But, it seems so hard to do when nothing in your life has gone right. Fear, hate, famine, cruelty, just when you've seen it all, that pain strikes again.

Lives are taken.

Fear rules.

Hate abides in every heart.

Why can't it stop? Why do people let those negative emotions control their every action? Maybe one day it will finally end, but for right now, I can't live my life to the fullest because there's nothing to live for. I'm sorry.


	2. Chapter 1

Me: Hello! I really got the idea for my OC being blind from another fanfic. It only had a couple of chapters written and it was near the back of the category I was looking in. Long story short; Blindness, not my idea. I just forgot whose it was. This is my first fanfic so if it isn't great at first, hang with me. I hope I'll get better.

Genis: (sarcastically) Yeah. You'll get better alright.

Me: Shut it Genis.

Lloyd: Hey! That's my line.

Me: If you're so worried about me stealing stuff, be my muse and do the disclaimer.

Lloyd: Fine (mutters something unintelligible) DragonLady24 doesn't own Tales of Symphonia or my line. Shut it Genis!

Genis: I didn't say anything!

Lloyd: (sarcastically) Right. I believe that.

Genis: How would you know? You don't have a brain!

Lloyd: Why you little.

Zelos: Hey, you beating on the brat? Mind if I join?

Lloyd: Nope.

Genis: Ah! (Gets beaten to a pulp)

Me: Poor Genis. He's one of my favorites-

Zelos: Hey!

Me: To bad he can't fight worth crap.

* * *

Chapter 1: Crippled.

"Ugh, so hot. Man, I'm beat." A red clad swordsman trudged along the sand behind his friends. A long, sweaty piece of brown hair slapped him in the face as if to make a point.

"And to think, Lloyd, a while ago you were so happy to be out of that Desian Base." A tiny Elvin mage smirked, his hair also deflated by the heat.

"Shut it Genis. At least it was cooler in there." Lloyd snapped. Much to his dismay, it only made Genis laugh harder.

"Oh! I think I see Triet guys!" A ditzy blonde exclaimed as she tripped over absolutely nothing.

"Yes! I can't wait to get to the inn!" Lloyd exclaimed.

"I swear Collette; you can't go one day without tripping up." An older version of the mage smiled. She smiled and helped lift the Chosen up. The girls sweaty clothes had accumulated most of the sand in that spot creating a Collette shaped ditch. She dusted off her clothes accidentally getting it on her white boots.

"Oh, I'm sorry Raine." Collette blushed.

"Don't apologize. It's not your fault ya dork." Lloyd laughed. He looked over his shoulder to see the silhouette of a man walking away. "Hey guys, Kratos is leaving us behind." The red swordsman tried to catch up with him.

"Hey, wait up!" Genis yelled. Collette smiled and ran after them, her coat sticking to her legs making her run in an awkward fashion. Raine just shook her head. "Silly children."

* * *

After a few more hours of walking, the sun cast an orange glow over the endless wastes as it sat itself halfway above the horizon. All the winds had ceased to blow and the small oasis called Triet was beginning to settle down for the night.

"Yes! We're here! Let's go to the inn!" Genis ran ahead of the group, managing to pull a Collette and trip.

"Genis!" Raine called.

Before anyone could make a move, a medium short woman who walked out of the inn strode over to the boy and helped him up.

"Be careful young man. You wouldn't want to get hurt." Her voice was a soft soprano that sounded like wind chimes.

"Thanks." Genis lifted up his head after dusting off his pants and gasped.

A woman around twenty years old stood above him. She was about Collette's height, maybe taller, with long, straight, brown hair that fell to her mid. A long-sword was strapped to her back and she wore a form fitting midnight blue tunic with black leggings, shoes, and fingerless gloves. She was quite beautiful, but that's not what made Genis gasp. A blue strip of cloth was wrapped around her head, covering her eyes.

"Y-y" Genis started, but Raine had already come over.

"Genis are you okay? Don't run off like that again you hear me." Raine inspected the boy from head to toe while the others came up from behind. "Look at this cut. It could be infected!"

"Raine." The boy moaned.

"Shush! The sands of Triet are very fine!"

"I-I'm fine Raine. Really!" Genis tried to squirm out of his sister's grasp. Collette bent down next to Genis and Lloyd came over to the odd girl.

"Thanks for help-"Lloyd stopped when the lady looked up from Genis to him. She smiled.

"You're welcome." Her voice held the tiniest trace of disappointment. After Raine was done she stood up and held out her hand to the woman, then just as quickly took it back.

"W-What do you want?" She asked angrily.

"Please." The woman said softly. "I just wanted to find the Chosen's group. I wish to aid her in her quest."

"Oh, I'm the Chosen!" Collette smiled. The girl turned to the direction of the Chosen's voice. Smiling, she reached her hand out to shake the young girl's but it was quickly pushed away by another.

"You cannot come. You would only be deadweight." A deeper voice stated. The girl quickly spun to the voice.

"Why do you assume that I'm deadweight? Because I'm crippled?" Anger now slipped into her voice.

"Kratos!" Lloyd said. "You don't have to be mean."

The girl sighed and held up her hand. "No. It's fine. I'm used to it. I'll be going now." With her head held slightly downwards, she turned and walked away. Then, she stopped. "Chosen." She spoke softly, pity evident in her tone.

"Y-Yes?" Collette responded.

"Don't let people fill your mind with meaningless hate, especially the ones closest to you. " And with that, she walked into the inn, leaving barely any imprint in the sand from where she walked.

"Good." Raine sighed. "She's gone."

"Raine, what did she mean by crippled?" Genis asked. "And why does she wear that headband over her eyes?"

"Yeah I wanna know too!" Lloyd said. Raine paled and quickly found a reason to procrastinate answering that question.

"It's getting dark; we should head to the inn." Raine quickly hurried inside.

"Huh? What's up with the Professor?" Lloyd asked himself.

"She is your teacher is she not?" Kratos asked. "I'm surprised she never taught you about crippled people." He muttered to himself and headed off towards the inn.

"Hey, wait up!" Lloyd yelled to Kratos.

"Take your own advice!" Genis called to Lloyd as he followed the sprinting swordsman.

Collette stared sadly at the woman's retreating figure. "That's horrible." She muttered to herself before going into the inn as well. Raine got the rooms as soon as they all caught up.

"Thank you. All of your rooms will be on that hallway to your left." The receptionist pointed to one side of the room. "And the pub is through that door." She then pointed to the opposite side of the room. Raine nodded and dragged Genis down the hallway to their room.

"Thanks." Collette smiled and skipped off to her room, but the usual spring in her step was gone. Kratos simply walked to the room without much fanfare. Lloyd seemed to be lost in thought. (Believe it or not. :D )

_What was wrong with that woman? Maybe I could ask Kratos._ That's when he noticed he was alone. "H-Hey guys!" He called running off to his room.

The rooms were simple. Two beds sat opposite of each other with a chair and desk in between. Kratos was sitting on the edge of his bed when Lloyd came in.

"Hey Kratos. What was with that girl earlier today?" The swordsman asked. Kratos shook his head.

"It's nothing you need to be concerned about." He muttered.

Lloyd wasn't satisfied with that answer. "What!? What do you mean I shouldn't be concerned? There was something wrong with her and neither you nor Raine treated her very nicely. How am I not supposed to be concerned?" He yelled.

"Calm down Lloyd." Kratos said. His eyes switched from Lloyd to the door. "The others might be getting hungry. Maybe we should go check on them." He rose and walked out of the room. As he opened the door, Raine accidentally punched him in the face.

She jerked backwards. The glare she was now receiving could scare the devil himself."Oh! I'm sorry. I was just about to knock and-"Raine was cut off by Lloyd.

"Oh, Hi Professor. What did you want?" Lloyd asked.

"Um. Collette and Genis were hungry so I came down to see if you wanted to join us." She replied.

"We were just about to do the same." Kratos interjected, rubbing his nose that was throbbing quite painfully. _If this is how hard she hits her kids, no wonder Lloyd…_

"YES! I'm starving!" Kratos's thoughts we're cut short as Lloyd darted past them and met up with Collette and Genis. Raine shook her head and followed them to the restaurant-café like place staying as far away from the agitated man as possible.

They sat at a table in the back of the room right near the door, chatting and planning the about the next few days.

"I can't wait to see the fire seal! It must be so cool!" Lloyd was ranting on.

"Let's see if you can beat your record." Genis smirked.

"What record?"

"How long it takes for your attention span to run out."

"Hey!" Lloyd shouted. Then thought a minute. "W-What's my best?"

Genis grinned evilly. "Ten seconds."

Lloyd's eye was now twitching in fury, but stopped when a melody pierced the air. It was clearly made by a stringed instrument. The tune sounded both happy and sad at the same time. It made that kind of atmosphere that was melancholy, and yet at the same time made you smile.

The group looked around to find the source, but no instrument of any kind was in sight.

"It's so beautiful. Where's it coming from?" Collette's eyes sparkled as she lifted her head up.

"It sounds like its coming from behind the curtains." Kratos nonchalantly pointed to the stage where two lead lined red curtains were drawn.

"I wonder why they're behind there." Raine said to no one in particular.

"Maybe the person is too shy to play on stage. I wish they weren't though. You could hear it so much better if those heavy drapes weren't in the way." He pouted. The room was silent as the last few notes were plucked.

"Aw. It stopped." Lloyd groaned. Citizens went back to their consistent merry making and now made the once calm room into a party. You could now hear faint yelling from the other side of the stage.

"Huh?" Lloyd cocked his head. "What's that?"

"It almost sounds like someone's yelling." Collette said sinking into her seat as if she was the one being yelled at.

Only the Chosen's group noticed the commotion near the stairs. Someone was shoved out of the room, and since Lloyd and co. had the table closest to it, they got the whole show. It was the girl from earlier being pushed by a man in his forties towards the door. A small, silver harp was in her hands, being clutched as if it were her life. The manager shoved a bag of clinging gald into her hands and tried to push her out the door.

"There's your money. Now leave my inn!" The manager yelled. The girl held her head down and slunk away like a scolded child would. Collette was red in the face now. Before anyone could stop her, she stood up and walked over to the pair.

"Excuse me, but that lady's with us sir." She said demandingly. Her group's jaws hit the floor at her anger. The manager spun around to her.

"Oh really? Then why don't you leave too!" He yelled. A few people were now staring.

This time, it was the woman who spoke. It was still as soft as before, but the anger that oozed from her voice was menacing.

"Stop this." She spoke. The man just smirked and slapped her face. Her head jerked a little at the contact, but otherwise, she was unfazed. Kratos wanted to teach that man a lesson. Not because he felt sorry for the girl. In his day, men didn't dare hit a girl in public. Even if they were crippled.

"There is no need to scare the Chosen." Her voice was as even as it was before. "Her group has already made it clear that I'm not wanted. Even though that burns right to my very core, I would not wish that pain upon someone else. Now, if you will stop torturing her, I'll be on my way." And with that she turned to leave.

"T-The Chosen?!" The beet red manager gasped all the tomato-y red draining from his face. The girl stopped mid-turn and smirked.

"That's sad." She said with fake sympathy. "I'm blind, and even I know the Chosen when I see her." The man turned to Collette again. His eyes were wide with fear now.

"Oh, p-please Chosen, f-forgive me! I had no idea! T-This cripple blinded me momentarily! I-I'm sorry!" He groveled at her feet. The blue clad girl would've rolled her eyes… if she could. An irritated sigh did just as well.

"I-It's fine. I-I-"Collette was soon joined by the others.

"Is there a problem here?" Kratos asked, laying a hand on his sheath.

"Hey, get away from her." Lloyd demanded. The manager quickly complied and left the scene. Thankfully, the people that had been watching now pretended not to notice it after hearing the Chosen was involved.

"Well then, I'll be going." The lady turned once again to leave.

"Wait!" Collette begged. "At-at least tell me your name." Her voice was almost a whisper.

"It's Aurora. Aurora Sakkara. I must now go. I'm truly sorry to have caused you trouble." She tried to leave yet again, but the little blonde wasn't finished yet.

"Please! Come with us." She was about ready to grab her arm and bury her halfway in the sand so she could not leave.

"What?!" Both the Professor and Kratos exclaimed. "You can't be serious Collette!" Raine ranted. "She-she…"

"She what?" Collette looked thoroughly confused at the Professor's outburst. Raine blushed and stuttered as a response.

"The Chosen… doesn't know what a blind person looks like?" The girl asked.

"Blind?"

"What?"

"Huh?"

Came the three children's brilliant responses.

"Leave. Now." Kratos said. His voice was low, menacing, and brimmed with agitation. The girl stiffened.

"You have no right to kick me out of this public area. If you don't want to be around me then leave." She stood now with her arms crossed, her harp dangling by a finger.

"The manager sure didn't want you here." Kratos threw back. Her face filled with hot blood.

"Fine." She hissed.

"Kratos! Professor! What's wrong with you two?" The whole group stepped back. Collette rarely got angry, and when she was, she was never _this_ angry. "Aurora can travel with us. I'm the Chosen and I get to make the decisions!" She yelled quite loudly. Even Kratos was taken aback. Raine's lip quivered in fury for a moment, then, "F-fine." She stuttered. "But, she'll have to supply herself with what she needs."

"If the Chosen wills it." Came Kratos's ever stoic answer.

"Thank you Chosen but,"

"But nothing. C'mon let's go to back to my room." Collette grabbed Aurora's hand and yanked her towards the hallway. Raine's eye twitched as she headed off with the Chosen. Kratos sighed and followed quietly.

"…"

"Genis, did you get-"

"No…"

"And we still don't know what blind means." Lloyd grunted and followed the groups retreating figures toward the inn.

"This is truly the weirdest night of my life." Genis stared into space.

* * *

Genis: (Voice muffled by body cast) Ha! That sucked.

Me: (Breathes deeply)-

Lloyd: Shut it Genis.

Me… He beat me to the catch. Oh well. (Bonks Genis on the head.)

Genis: Ow…

Me: Aw… sorry Genis. (Pats him on the head.)

Genis: Paaaiiiinnnn…

Me: -.-' Oops! Sorry.

Zelos: Don't be my sweet hunny.

Me: SHEENA!

Sheena: What?

Me: Please kick his butt. (Points to Zelos.)

Sheena: (Rolls up sleeves.) With pleasure…

Zelos: NO! Not the face-

Me: Going…Going… aaaand gone! Wow Sheena. You gotta teach me how to do that.

Sheena: Sorry. Ninja secret.

Me: Stupid Ninja secrecy stuff… (Pouts in the corner)

Lloyd: Uh… Review please, even if it's bad.

Me: Nice ones are more preferable though. :D


	3. Chapter 2

Me: WHOOT! Chapter 2!

Lloyd: What're you so excited about?

Me: …It's the second chapter. I kept writing. I didn't give up. Even though I haven't had any reviews yet… (sniffle)

Genis: (Peers over a book) Shut up! No one cares.

Me: That's so mean Genis! You're not a favorite of mine anymore.

Genis: (Sarcastically) Oh. Burn…

Me: If you say so. (Smirks evilly as she scribbles something on a notepad)

Genis: (Bursts into flames) AHHH!!!

Me: Yes Genis… Burn…

Lloyd: O.o!

Me: Any input Lloyd?

Lloyd: Meep!

Me: Good. I do not own Tales of Symphonia. I do however own Aurora Sakkara, my OC.

Lloyd: …Aren't you gonna put that out?

Me: No… (Examines fingernails)

Lloyd: O.o'…

* * *

Chapter Two: Useless… Or Not

"You're buying your own room." Raine stuck a finger out at the cripple. "I will not allow you to room with Collette."

"I understand." Aurora nodded. She turned to the half-asleep receptionist. "May I have a room?" The girl behind the desk jerked up. She had greasy blonde hair and chocolate brown eyes. Her outfit cut off right above her cleavage showing off everything to anyone taller than herself.

"No. We're all out. Sorry." Her tone was bland and uncaring. Aurora nodded and turned to leave. As she did, spit landed behind her scraping the back of her shoes. Her footsteps ceased and her fists balled up. Heat rose up to her face.

"T-That's horrible! Why did you do that?" Collette asked. For her, that was like the lady jumping over the counter and beating Aurora to a pulp.

"You got any sense child? That lady's a cripple. A demon sent straight from hell. We can't just let her stay here. She might scare the other residents."

"So you do have an extra room?" Kratos asked.

"N-No! And even if we did, you can't make me give it to her." She flicked her wrist. "Why are you protecting her anyways? It's not like she's gonna be much help to anybody. Ha, she might as well die right here. It would make the world a better place."

"You shouldn't say things like that…" Collette said quietly.

"Hey! She's a better person than you are!" Lloyd yelled.

"Yeah!" Genis agreed. "You human's are so-"

"Genis. Calm down." Raine whispered in his ear.

"What are you guys, the nice police?" The impatient woman asked cynically.

"Nice comeback." Genis muttered sarcastically.

"Actually, we're the Chosen's group. I suggest you give our newest member a room." Kratos stared the lady down. She shook in her seat.

"I-I really don't have an extra room. Here! Look at the guest book!" She shoved a green canvas covered book in his hands. Kratos grunted in reply and quickly flipped through the pages. Not an empty space in sight.

"Raine, you room with Collette. Lloyd, you and Genis share a room. Aurora can room with me." He threw the book back down on the desk.

"N-No. That's fine." The blue clad girl looked panicked. "I-I'll sleep outside. I'm used to it."

"But, it's cold outside. You can room with me!" Collette smiled at what at what she thought was a brilliant idea.

"No. I don't trust her yet." Raine's eyes narrowed.

"Fine, she can room with either me or Genis." Lloyd said as if it were a 'duh' kind of thing.

"No. You can't room with a woman." Raine quickly turned away that idea. The experience would surely scar them for life.

"Like I said, I'll be fine outside. I've done it before and I'll do it again." Aurora almost screamed and left before anyone could retort.

"…"

"…"

"…"

"…"

"…"

"Anyone else think that was weird?" Genis asked.

"She didn't seem to like Kratos too much." Raine said.

"Well, I wouldn't want to room with him either, but I have to." Lloyd grumbled. "Can I room with Genis?" He asked.

"Yeah Raine! Please?" Genis gave her sister puppy dog eyes. Right, like she hadn't seen that one before.

"No. You two would never get to sleep. You'd just play. Besides, Lloyd has to make me a key crest… right Lloyd?" She eyed him with a deal-with-it glare.

"Fine." He huffed.

Aurora burst out the inn doors and hid in the stables. Her hands went to her knees as she tried to catch her breath. After _that_ incident a few years ago, she had never trusted a man. Just the thought of rooming with another one made her feel uncomfortable. It might bring back those painful nightmares that just recently left her sleep.

"Whine!"

"Huh?" Her hand reached forward trying to find what had caused the sound. Something furry nuzzled her hand.

"Aw…" She giggled and stroked the furry things head. "I bet your really cute, aren't cha?"

The creature gave her a large, fat, lick on the side of her face.

"And really big." She chuckled and rubbed the saliva off her face. The beast whined in disappointment. She sat with her hand idly petting the beast, as if in deep thought. Letting her hand slip away, the girl sighed and felt her way to a nice cozy corner in the stable. She slunk down to her knees and leaned against the wall. It only took a few minutes for her to fall asleep. The animal whined softly and slid its body behind her, curling its tail around her waist. She reacted involuntarily by curling up into a ball.

Kratos's eyes followed the boy, his son, walk out of the room to go give Raine her finished key crest. As soon as the door closed, he rose from his seat on the bed and headed outside. Triet at night was cold. Icy cold. Freezing.

But of course, he wouldn't know.

He watched the projection of the stars cloaking Derris-Kharlan. They weren't nearly as beautiful as the real ones you could see four-thousand years ago. He came to think about what he thought about every other night. Death. He should've died long before now. It was like a curse, being immortal. Having to watch all of the ones you held dear surpass you in age and die. Like his little sister, Melinda. She was born five years after him, yet he was there, alive, on her sixtieth birthday, still stuck at twenty-eight. The angel sighed, making his way over to the stable to check on Noishe. No telling when he last ate, but he knew it was certainly not any time today. He didn't expect to see what he did.

Aurora was curled up in a tight ball with Noishe wrapped around her. That was funny. Noishe never cared too much for stranger. Now that Kratos got a good look at her, she seemed familiar. But, it couldn't be that person. Could it? … No.

Kratos didn't know why, but he glared at his former companion. The teal and white dog only cocked his head to the side, and then whined. It was almost as if he was saying 'Why should I move? You can't control me. I'm not a dog.' The man sighed and put his hand to his forehead.

"Hey Kr-AH!" Kratos ripped his sword out of its sheath and held it against the unfortunate person's neck.

"Lloyd?"

"Duh."

"You'll do best to learn not to sneak up behind me." Kratos calmly put down his sword and looked at the boy. Lloyd looked over into the stable.

"Kratos?"

"Yes, Lloyd."

"What does blind mean?"

Kratos was very close to punching himself in the face. So, he kept it to an eye twitch. How could his son be so stupid?

"Are… you okay Kratos?"

"Lloyd. Are you that dense?" The red-head asked.

"Huh?"

"Lloyd, look at Aurora."

"Okay."

"Do you see the cloth over her eyes?"

"Yes."

"Why do you think she put it there?"

"Because… The sun hurts her eyes?"

It was very hard for Kratos to keep his voice level. "No, Lloyd." He sighed. "It's because she can't see. That's what blind means. Honestly. Is this what happens when one is raised by a dwarf?"

"Uh…"

"Never mind Lloyd. Go back to the inn and get some sleep." The purple clad mercenary stalked past the dumbfounded brunette, muttering curses to himself.

"Okay…" Lloyd turned his head to look at the blind girl. "Man, I couldn't imagine not being able to see." He said before following Kratos back to the inn.

Aurora chuckled to herself. "Trust me Lloyd, it's hell."

* * *

Aurora was the first up the next morning. Raine had already established that she would buy her own supplies, so she did some early morning shopping. Her pack was light carrying only three apple gels, one orange gel, and a panacea bottle. She was spending the rest of the morning with the large furry creature we all know and love as Noishe, but she doesn't know that yet.

"Hello."

Aurora jumped at the person's voice.

"If you are going to be of any assistance, you should be fully aware of your surroundings." It was a man. She knew that much. So it must be…

"Hello Kratos." She didn't turn towards him. Instead, she walked back into the stable and started to pet Noishe.

"Noishe doesn't usually take to strangers that quickly." The man had followed her.

"Who?" Aurora kept stroking the protozoan.

"The animal you are petting. That would be Noishe. He's Lloyd's dog."

"Whine!" Noishe ears went back. Pshh. Dog.

"Oh. He's rather large to be a dog." The girl patted the 'dog's' head before walking past Kratos and back out to Triet.

"Are you trying to avoid me?" Kratos asked, causing Aurora to stop.

"N-No." She managed to stutter that before retreating further into the city. Raine was the next she met.

"Good-morning." Raine said with all the acid she could muster filling her tine.

"Good-morning." Aurora responded, not affected by the Professor's tone in the least bit.

"Hi Aurora!" The little blonde seemed to pop out of nowhere. Despite her cheery demeanor, her body was racked with fear. Anyone who was going to lose their humanity willingly would be scared. "Hi Professor! I was wondering. When do we plan on leaving?"

"As soon as the rest get up. I've already gotten the supplies we need." Raine replied. She waved the Chosen off before turning to Aurora.

"I'll make it clear. I do not want you on this journey. As soon as we are through with the fire seal, I want you to leave. Understand?"

"F-Fire Seal? I-I mean yes. Of course."

Raine looked at her strangely. "Alright then."

Aurora stood in her spot, unable to move. "There's a fire seal. Fire?" She whimpered to herself. That was the last thing she saw. It blinded her.

"Hey Aurora, uh you okay?" Genis had walked up behind her, pulling the girl from her reverie.

"Oh, um yes. Uh, excuse me for asking, but, who are you. I've never heard your voice before."

"Oh right. You can't- I mean, um. I'm Genis. Raine, the one you were just talking to, she's my sister." Genis had already figured out Aurora's condition on his own. _Lloyd was probably too dense to recognize it though._ He thought.

"Well then, hello to you too Genis." Aurora smiled down at the boy. The boy stayed quiet for a while. "Is something wrong Genis?"

"No, I- I mean well, I just wanted to, you see… never mind. Bye." Genis then quickly hi-tailed it outta there.

"That's strange. Oh, well. Might as well wait by the gate." Aurora said to herself.

After two Aqua Edges, a slap, and a punch to the face, Lloyd finally awoke and the group was on their way. After about an hour, Collette seemed to have an epiphany.

"Oh!" She exclaimed.

"What is it Collette? Something wrong?" Lloyd asked the Chosen.

"We all know Aurora, but she doesn't know us." The girl said.

"Don't worry I've-"

"Nonsense. I'm Collette, that's Lloyd, and there's Genis..." Collette pointed to each person respectively.

"Collette." Genis tried to intercept.

"And Raine."

"Chosen."

"And Kratos. That's everybody."

"Collette." Raine said gently. "Aurora can't see."

"What?" Collette asked.

"That's why she wears that headband around her eyes."

"It is? I just thought the sun hurt her eyes."

"Don't worry Collette, I thought the same thing." Lloyd put his arm around her shoulder.

A collective sigh came from the entire group.

"Then, how will she get to know us?" The blonde asked.

"Well," Aurora started. "I recognize people by their voices. If you each say your name, I'll know you by sound."

"Okay then." Collette giggled. "I'm Collette.

"Lloyd!"

"You know me already. I'm Genis."

"Raine." She didn't seem happy to give her identity to a blind person.

"Kratos."

Aurora nodded. "Okay. That should do. The more I hear your voices, the better I'll get to know your names."

For the next four hours, Collette, Genis, and Lloyd had all gravitated towards Aurora, asking her questions.

"So, how do you manage to get around?" Lloyd asked.

"I'm curious about that myself." Kratos admitted. "You do not use a walking cane like other blind people I've seen.

"That's an easy one. I use my ears."

"Your… ears?" Genis was skeptic.

"Mm-hm. When you don't have your sight, other senses seemed to be heightened. For instance, using my ears, I can hear where people are standing."

"How do you know where people are standing?" Collette looked at her as if she'd grown three heads and a tail.

"Many people do not notice, but they shift a lot when they're standing. It makes enough noise for me to hear it. Therefore, I have no use for a walking cane. It would only be a hindrance."

"Wow. That's so cool. You'd probably make an amazing eavesdropper." Genis said. Aurora chuckled. Raine didn't seem happy about that fact.

After a few more hours of walking in the wastes of the Triet area, the adults of the group caught sight of a band of bandits. Two swordsmen and a witch. Unfortunately, they seemed to spot the group too. Kratos took charge as the group got ready to fight.

"Lloyd, you and I'll take on the swordsmen. Collette, keep the witch at bay. Raine, stand back and heal the group when necessary, and Genis, you protect Aurora."

"Protect me?" Aurora scoffed at the mercenary's remark. "He doesn't need to protect me."

"You are blind. You will be useless to us in battle."

Aurora's pleasant features were twisted in anger. She breathed deeply before sprinting past the group, swiftly pulling long-sword from its sheath. In about two seconds, she met with the group of bandits and in one clean swipe, the battle was over. The three people lay on the ground, bleeding profusely from their stomachs. Aurora calmly took a gray cloth out of her pack and cleaned her sword of all blood. Turning her head back towards the group, she asked "Are you coming?"

All of group's mouths, excluding Kratos's, hit the floor.

"That-was-amazing!" Lloyd yelled. "Man. I don't think that even Kratos could've done that." He kept at it. The mercenary's eye twitched at his son's remark. Despite that, he turned to the blue clad girl.

"Forgive me. It seems I underestimated your abilities." And with that, he walked on.

Meanwhile, the kids were ranting amongst themselves.

"That was cool. Did you see it Collette?" Lloyd asked.

"Mm-hm."

"Wow. I thought you would've gotten mad Lloyd." Genis smirked.

"Mad at what?"

"At someone outdoing you. Again. And this time it was a girl."

Lloyd stared into space for a moment, registering what Genis said. His face turned red. "Hey!"

"Come on children, we've got to leave." Raine said.

* * *

Finally, after a long day of walking, the Triet ruins could be seen on the horizon. The Professor was making odd squeaks. She didn't seem to notice the five sets of eyes staring at her.

"Hurry. If we hurry we can make it before it gets totally dark. Come on. Move it." Raine's pace sped up and slowed down at awkward intervals, making her look like Collette.

"Sis, you gonna be okay?" Genis asked wearily.

"What do you mean?" Raine slapped the back of her little brother's head. He winced and rubbed the spot. That was gonna hurt in the morning. "We need to get to the ruins so we can find shelter there." Her eyes glazed over after she uttered the word ruins.

"No." Kratos replied bluntly.

"What?!" Raine screeched.

"It's too dark. Monsters gather in the ruins for warmth at night. We'll camp here for tonight." He dropped the bag he was carrying and started to dig a hole for the fire. "Lloyd, you and Collette gather some wood from the palm trees by the ruins before it gets dark. Genis should start dinner. Professor and Aurora, do whatever you wish."

"B-But I. I mean. I'll go with Lloyd and Collette. Yes. They might need some help." Raine giggled manically before skipping off to join the teenagers.

"Okay…" Aurora said. "Is she okay Genis?"

Genis slowly looked up from the pans he was unpacking. "Don't ask. Please. So I may retain what little sanity I have left. Don't ask."

"Alright then…" Deciding not to be lazy, Aurora searched the perimeter of the camp for rocks to put around the pit. After finding a few good ones, she placed them around them around the hole. Lloyd and Collette returned with the wood.

"Hey guys. Where's Raine?" Genis asked.

"She said she'd look for more wood. I guess she really likes gathering wood." Lloyd shrugged and placed the wood in the fire pit. A distant cry of "POLYCARBONATE!" could be head within two miles of the ruins.

"Okay then." Genis quickly changed the subject. "Uh I'll get the food started. What do you guys want?"

"How about some ramen?" Lloyd suggested.

"Alright. It'll be done in a while." Genis dug around in his pack for ingredients. Lloyd and Collette chatted about something that nobody could understand, and Kratos sat near the fire, cleaning his sword. Aurora found a spot far away from the campfire to sit. Holding out her hand as if to grab something, a blue light shimmered before fading to reveal a harp. It was made of pure silver mana. A wing-less dragon made up the frame. The eyes were composed of midnight black onyx. Its four feet held a string in each talon, two feet on the top and two on the bottom, four claws on each. She stroked the shining dragon's figure, noting the position it was in, and started to play. It was the same song the group had heard at the café back in Triet.

"That was you!" Lloyd asked, shocked.

"No, duh." Genis said.

"Wow, that's so pretty. Where did you learn to play?" Collette asked. Aurora stopped playing.

"My adoptive mother taught me." Aurora said.

"Adoptive?" Kratos asked.

"Yes. I never knew my real mother. My adoptive on said she found me on her doorstep when I was just an infant."

"What's your mother's name?" Collette asked.

"Her name was Maria." Aurora replied.

"Was?" Genis and Lloyd asked simultaneously.

"Yes. My village was destroyed about three years ago. My mother died in the process. In fact, I'm the only survivor as far as I know." The blue clad swordswoman held her hand down, stroking her sliver harp once more.

"That's horrible." Collette gasped.

"Hey Aurora can I-"

"I'm back! Is dinner ready?" Raine asked. She carried a large chunk of black rock in her hand. It reflected the light of the fire perfectly.

"Raine, what is that?" Genis asked, inching away from his sister.

"Oh, nothing. Just a little souvenir from the Triet ruins." She giggled.

"Okay. And, yes dinner's ready. Time to eat!" Genis said dishing up some of the soup and handing it to his sister. The rest of the group followed in suit. Aurora inhaled deeply as she dismissed her harp.

"Wow Genis this is great." Lloyd said through a mouthful of noodles.

_Slap_. "Don't talk with your mouth full Lloyd." The Professor scolded.

"You always make the best ramen." Collette commented.

"Quite. I don't think I've had a meal this decent in weeks." Aurora said.

"Thanks." Was all Genis said before slurping up some more of the dish.

The rest of the evening consisted of mostly chatting about the next day and what it would hold. Lloyd and Collette eventually broke off from the group, having their own conversation. Genis looked longingly after his friends. This caused him o go quiet, Raine refused to talk to Aurora more than necessary, and Kratos hadn't talked the whole evening. Raine eventually got bored and started up a conversation with Kratos. The half-elf admitted it to herself that she did find him attractive. She knew she shouldn't be infatuated, but she couldn't help herself. Aurora turned to Genis.

"Are you okay Genis?"

"Yes. Why do you ask?"

"You're usually more talkative."

"Really?"

"Yeah."

"Well, it's just, Lloyd and Collette seem to get along well."

"And…"

"And, Lloyd's my only best friend. I just kinda feel…

"Left out?"

"Yeah." Genis sighed.

"I know how you feel." Aurora tried to console him. Raine stood up and announced bed time for the kiddies.

"Aw man. I'm not sleepy." Lloyd protested.

"Yeah. Me neither sis."

"No. Go to bed. You'll need your strength for in the morning." Raine glared at the defiant boys.

"But, I-I'd rather hear Aurora play her harp!" Lloyd came up with an excuse.

"As you wish." Aurora summoned her harp back out. It appeared in its flashy blue light.

"But," Raine started to protest. Aurora shook her head, silencing the silver head and began to play a soothing tune. Each note melted into the next. It was sickly sweet and the tempo seemed to drag. Lloyd's eyes scrunched up, trying to keep his eyelids up. Genis yawned and fell back on his sleeping back. Collette was snoring softly on her pillow. Noting the sleepy children, the harp player ended the tune with a gentle cord and dismissed the instrument once more.

"That's that." She said before scooting as far away from the fire as possible and curling up into a ball.

"Are you not cold?" Kratos asked.

"No." The girl replied nonchalantly. "The cold has never bothered me." She wrapped her arms around herself, getting ready for sleep. The Professor on the other hand, was shivering.

"Are you going to be okay Raine?" Kratos asked. The Professor controlled herself a little more so as to look dignified in front of the mercenary.

"No. I am quite fine actually. Do you want me to take the night watch?" She asked.

"No. Get some sleep. I'll take it."

Raine smiled widely at him before sliding into her own sleeping bag and falling asleep. Noishe trotted into to camp from wherever he goes during the day, and curled up around Aurora again. Kratos just shook his head at the beast and looked up at the stars. At Derris-Kharlan. At his "home".

* * *

Me: Yay! Twelve pages!

Lloyd: That's not very much…

Me: Do you remember what happened last time someone mocked me Lloyd. (Points to Genis still on fire from the beginning of the skit.)

Lloyd: Oh yeah. Shutting up.

Me: Good boy. Have a treat.

Lloyd: Hey! I'm not a dog!

Me: Neither is Noishe but you still call him one.

Lloyd: You've gotta point there.

Me: Of course I do. Anyways. You've already read (I hope) Review please. You'll get a virtual cooookkiieee.


	4. Chapter 3

Me: (Takes deep breath)

Lloyd: Oh boy...

Me: Yyyyyyyyyyeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeessssssssssssssssssssssssssssssss!!!!!!!!!!!! Reeeeeeeeeeevvvvvvvvvvvviiiiiiiieeeeeeeeeeeeeeewwwwwwwww!!!!! I'm so happy! Thank you thank you thank you so much AnimeAngel809! That was just the motivation I needed. Sorry about no anonymus reviewing, but now I can thank you personally. I will continue this story even if you are my only reader! And, as promised, here's your virtual cookie. And, I made this one extra long, just for you. Enjoy!

Lloyd: It's only one review.

Me: ...Lloyd...

Lloyd: Shutting up!

Me: Good. Now for another muse. (Genis had to be sent to the hospital.) Wow. Only three chapters and I've already lost a muse. How sad. Hm... how about... Presea!

Presea: Hello.

Me: Presea, would you mind doing the disclaimer?

Presea: DragonLady24 does not own Tales of Symphonia. She just owns Aurora Sakkara, her OC.

Me: (Stares blankly at Lloyd.) Why can't you be like Presea Lloyd? It would make life so much simpler.

Lloyd: Then life would be boring.

Me: No, then life would be sensible.

Lloyd: (sighs) If you say so.

Me: You're catching on. Anyways. Enjoy the fic! XD

A/N: I've changed the layout of the seal to make things a little more... interesting. Oh, and sorry Raine fans. I mean no offense. She was my favorite female character too. But, she was just a great tool. Sorry! Well, enough of the entrance, let's get on with it!

* * *

Chapter 3: She's a Maniac

As the last few cinders from the fire were snuffed out by the sand, our heroes were just waking up. Well, five of them were. Kratos was already awake, as life would dictate.

"Man. I think that's the best sleep I've had for a while now." Lloyd yawned.

"It's a miracle! Lloyd isn't the last one up." Genis was making omelets over the dying fire. Lloyd threw a pillow at his companion and hit him square in the face.

"Shut up Genis!"

"Lloyd, get a better comeback book."

"Shut up- I mean... Quiet!" Lloyd protested. Genis sighed sliding an omelet onto a plate and handing it to his friend. The boy snatched it out of the half-elf's hand and, in about two seconds, had digested the whole thing.

"Heh. The boy's got an appetite." Aurora chuckled, stretching her arms out.

"Tell me about it." Genis rolled his eyes at the teenage swordsman and made him another omelet. "This time Lloyd, leave some food for the rest of us. We gotta eat too ya know."

"Quiet Genis."

"You were better off using shut up." The silver-head said cynically. Lloyd's face grew red.

"Oh, Genis. You're making omelets?!" Collette rubbed life into her aqua eyes and scooted towards the mage. She grabbed a plate off the stack beside him and held it out expectantly. "I love your omelets!" Genis smiled back at the flamboyant Chosen and served her some eggy goodness. She giggled and turned to Lloyd. "Oh, Lloyd. You're awake. It's good to see you up early."

"Do I really sleep in that much?" The brunette asked with his head down. Collette straightened up.

"Oh! I-I didn't mean it like that. I'm sorry." She looked down at her half eaten omelet.

Seeing her deppresed state, Lloyd changed his attitude. "It's okay ya dork. I was just kidding. Stop apologizing all the time."

"Oh. Right. Sorry. I mean! Um. Ah- Sorry." The clutzy blonde struggled for words when a familiar voice entered the conersation.

"Good morning children. L-Lloyd! Is that you? You're awake already! T-That's wonderful." Raine slid on her orange coat and walked over to Genis.

"I'm not lazy! I just like to be well-rested! WELL-RESTED!" Lloyd yelled.

"Calm down Lloyd." Kratos said from his spot. It looked like he was in a corner. Kratos could make any wide space a corner.

"Fine." Lloyd sighed. He scooped up the last of his omelet on a fork and shoveled it into his mouth, chewing angrily. Aurora yawned and made her way towards the food as well. Genis smiled at her and ploped breakfast on her plate too.

"Thank you." She said before settling down to eat her meal.

"Aren't you going to eat Kratos? You'll need the energy." Genis called over his shoulder. The mercenary shook his head and pulled out his sword to clean it. Genis shrugged. "Suit yourself." The mage then piled an omelet on his plate and put the extra plate back in the bag. They ate the rest of thier meal mostly in silence. It was only broken a few times so Lloyd could make an irrelevant remark. After cleaning up the campsite and putting out the fire, they headed off to the first seal. Raine, once again, got all excited.

"What's got you so hyper?" Genis asked his sister.

"Hyper? Who's hyper? I'm not hyper. Am I?" The Professor rattled on. Aurora however, was walking towards the back of the group. The bile in her stomach was having a hard time digesting the contents of her stomach. She was very close to throwing up.

"Are you haing second thoughts?" Kratos appeared beside her causing her to jump. "Why are you so surprised about me talking to you?"

"I-I'm not! H-Having second thoughts, I mean. A-And about talking to you." She mumbled out quickly.

"Mm-hm." He replied skeptically. "If you have any doubts on this journey, you will surely die. Be on your guard at all times, or leave now." He stated. Aurora nodded quickly and walked a little quicker, catching up with the younger part of the group. Raine (even in Ruin-Mode) Saw an opportuniy and slowed her footsteps to walk beside Kratos. The mercenary was indifferent as ever.

"Oh, hi Aurora. 'Sup?" Lloyd greeted the cripple.

"Nothing." She replied swiftly. A bead of sweat trailed down her brow.

"Hey, Aurora."

"Yes."

"There was something I wanted to ask you."

"Ask away."

"Where did you learn how to sword-fight?"

Aurora chuckled and tried to silence her upset stomach with small-talk. "I've fought with swords since I was little. Five maybe? The blacksmith in my village, Gregory, trained me in longswords. I do miss him."

"Oh. C-could you train me?"

"But Lloyd, Kratos is training you, right?" Collette asked confusedly. Lloyd almost glared at the girl, but he didn'y have the heart to.

"Y-Yeah, but, I don't think he would mind. Besides, I don't think he likes me anyway. So. Please?"

"I don't know." The blue-wearing girl said. "A swordsman pupil is very important to him or her. I wouldn't want to steal you from Kratos. But, I may be able to offer some pointers."

"Aw. C'mon."

"I don't think that would be a good idea..."

"Pleeeeaaaaseee!"

"Lloyd, you sound like a whining child. She said no. So no." Genis remarked.

"Nobody asked you!" Lloyd's face grew a dark shade of red.

Aurora sighed. "No. It's okay. I, guess I could help you, but, only occasionally."

Kratos could hear this converstion with his angelic hearing and sighed.

"Are you alright Kratos?" Raine asked, putting a hand on his soulder. He gently took it and brushed it off. Raine blushed at his touch.

"Yes, thank you for your concern."

Raine was itching with curiosity. "Um, so, what do you think of Aurora?"

"She's a person just like anybody else. What else is there to think about?"

That's not what the Professor wanted to hear.

"W-Well, I mean. She's slowing us down!" She replied.

"Really? How?" The red-head countered.

"Well, she's blind. She won't be able to navigate through the puzzles in the seals, and, what about traps, or an ambush?"

"I think she could deal fairly well with the dungeons and ambushes, but you have a point on the traps."

"Yes. Of course."

"We'll just have to assist her when the time comes."

"W-What?"

"Hm?"

"Nothing." Raine sighed and watched her boots for the rest of the way.

* * *

The group reached the seal after a short thirty minutes. This seemed to up Raine's spirits.

"WONDERFUL!" She darted past Kratos, Aurora, and the rest of the gang to a large, black, slab in the middle of the plaza. "Yes! It's surface is so delectably smooth. Ahahaha!" The rest of the group stared in either shock, or horror, or embarrasment at the once calm, cool, and collected Professor.

"Genis. Is this normal?" Lloyd asked, inching away from the crazed lady.

"Mwahaha! The carvings! This is ancient Trietan. So intricate! It must be wards against magic, developed-"

"Is it?" Kratos inquired. The little half-elf was sweating buckets. Then sighed in defeat.

"Only around ruins." He looked down and noticed a chunk of the slab was missing. It looked suspiciously like Raine's black lump she'd brought back the other night. "Raine... What did you do last night?"

Raine paid him no heed.

"Heh. She's a Ruin Maniac." Aurora smiled slyly in the direction of Raine's cackling. Genis rolled his eyes and walked up beside his sister.

"Okay Raine time to-"

"Here! Here! Collette! Place your hand on this pedastal. Yes. This one right here!" She was pointing, laughing, and talking at the same time. Collette reluctantly obeyed, keeping a safe distance from the maniacal woman. Carefully, as if her touch would crumble it, she placed her hand on the indentation in the stone. Raine giggled gleefully as the slab slid sideways (Alliteration!) to reveal a staircase. Collette gasped putting a hand to her mouth.

"Wow! I guess I'm really the Chosen after all."

"Gee. When did you figure that out?" Genis said to himself.

"Alright! Let's go inside!"

"Are you sure you'll be able to maintain that enthusiasm Lloyd?" Kratos asked skeptically.

"I give him five minutes." Genis said smuggly as he followed the ecstatic brunette down the staircase. Collette skipped along behind them. Aurora shrugged and followed thier footsteps. Raine awkwardly made her entrance.

"... What have I gotten my sorry-self into?" Kratos asked himself.

A little ways into the temple...

"Okay. This is boring-"

"Hah! A minute and forty-two seconds. Congradulations Lloyd." Genis smirked.

"Qui- Shu- Argh!" Lloyd struggled for a rebuttal. Collette giggled.

"Don't worry Lloyd. You'll get better." The blonde patted him on the back. Blood crept up the swordsman's neck.

"T-Thanks."

Raine had stopped her little rant about halfway in after noting the look Kratos was giving her. She'd realized how she had acted in front of her crush, and now tried to avoid him. Five minutes and they faced a challenge. Two doors were at the end of the hallway. Lloyd stood there, blankly staring into space.

"I choose... the right one!" He zipped inside.

"Wait!" Genis and Collette ran after thier idiotic friend.

"Children. Don't get seperated from the group!" Raine scolded. Aurora ran after them, but as soon as the Professor cleared the thresh-hold, a large stone door split the group in two. Aurora froze in her spot. Oh-no. She was now alone with Kratos. Her stomach tightened into a knot.

"Hey!" Lloyd shouted from the other side. "When did this get here?"

"When you blindly ran through the door, imbecile!" Genis yelled at the older boy.

"Oh-no!" Collette moaned.

"Argh! Lloyd, you idiot!" _Smack._ Raine sighed. "Kratos... Aurora, you two take the other passage. We'll meet up at the end." She mumbled some more things, but they couldn't be heard behind the stone door. Kratos turned towards the other entrance.

"Come. We'll need to hurry." He stated. Aurora quickly followed him through the door so it wouldn't close on her, and then kept a fair distance between herself and the mercenary. Thier path led them to a circular room surrounded by a lava moat. An exit was barred off at the other end. A crest-looking hole was in the wall beside it. Kratos stepped forward cautiously. "Be careful. I don't like this place." They had gotten to the center of the room without anything to suspicious happening.

"What's the trick to this?" Aurora asked to no one in particular. She turned her head, as if trying to observe the room. She could still see the faint glow of the lava, her eyes allowed her that much. Rasing her head towards the ceiling, she gasped. A bunch of glowing dots filled her mind.

"What?" Kratos asked.

She pointed directly above them.

Fire birds.

A single shriek pierced the air followed by more. Aurora froze in her spot as the dots got bigger, and closer.

"Move." Kratos commanded. What? was Aurora deaf now too? "Move!" He reaced out to push her, but she snapped out of it and rolled to the side, narrowly dodging a barrage of flaming beaks. Both warriors drew thier swords. Kratos short, swift strikes killed two at a time. Aurora's attacks were jumpy, making her miss a few times, but she made progress. Slow progress.

"What are you doing?" Kratos shouted across the cavernous room. A bird flanked the swordswoman. Kratos quickly chanted "Lightning!" A few birds pecked him as a result. He dealt a few more killing blows. One of his prey dropped a red crystal. He quickly snatched it up and examined it. He looked from it, to the door. You could almost hear his mind click. "Aurora! Follow me!" He barked and charged at the exit. Aurora didn't need to be told twice. Kratos shoved the crystal into the hole and ran under the raising bars. Another stone door similar to the last two slowly descended. "Hurry!" He called.

She could hear the stong grinding. Reality hit her in a wave. If that door closed, there was no escape. She would be stuck in here with hundreds of fire creatures. Adrenaline pumped rapidly through her viens. the door was a foot away from the ground now. All of the birds had their attention set on her. She jumped for it and slid under the stone, it barely scraping the soles of her shoes. She sat there for a second, panting.

_Bam._ The ground under her shook as the flock of birds slammed into the door. A few shrill cries could be heard from the other side.

"What did you think you were doing back there?" Kratos was seething.

Aurora jerked her head up.

"I had to waste valuable mana back there to keep you alive."

The woman sunk back. "I-I've just had a bad experience with fire. That's all." She muttered.

"If you're going to let the past hold you back, then you should go home. Now." He turned to walk the other way. Aurora winced.

"I don't have a home." She whispered to herself. Kratos paused for a second.

"After this seal is released, I want you to leave. My instinct was right from the beggining. You are just slowing us down."

Aurora sighed, a tear slipped out from under her headband. Oh, if only her tear ducts were damaged.

* * *

Meanwhile...

"There... and_..._ there! Done!" Genis finished the puzzle on thier side of the seal.

"Way to go Genis!" Lloyd punched his friend's shoulder.

"You're so smart Genis. No wonder you got a scholarship to the Palmacoasta Academy!" Collette beamed at the mage. Genis lifted his head and puffed out his chest.

Collette looked over her shoulder and noticed that Raine was moping at the back of the group.

_If only I would've stayed closer to Kratos. **I** would be the one alone with him. Not that stupid cripple. How could she get so lucky. She wasn't even good enough for him._

"Um, Professor, are you okay?" Collette cocked her head. Raine was jerked back to reality.

"Oh. Yes, Collette. Is Genis through with the puzzle?"

"Yeah sis. Let's go!" Genis hurried through the door. The two groups met in the warp room. As soon as Raine spotted Aurora with her head down, she grinned_. Ha. Rejected. Did she really think Kratos would take a liking to her_?_ How pathetic._ Kratos approached the acciddent prone blonde.

"Are you ready Chosen?" He asked. Collette smiled and nodded her head. "Good. Then let us go." He walked into the purple glow of the warp and materialized on the other side.

"Here we go!" Lloyd said as the three children teleported together. Raine smirked before walking into said warp. This left Aurora alone to herself. She let her more malevolent thoughts take over. _Nobody ever understands. I'd like to see them deal with being blind. Rejected by society and thrown out on the streets. Go without a decent meal for weeks, and fight off bandits constantly. Sigh. Calm down Aurora. Let's go._ She looked behind herself, like a convict on the run, and stepped into the warp pad.

She materialized on the top room without seconds to spare. The glowing red light above the alter erupted, revealing a giant, magma cat. Purple spikes made thier home in its spine and tail. It roared before charging full speed ahead at the group. The rest of the group sprang into action. Aurora let her pack slide off her arm. She slowly grabbed her swords hilt, and slid it out of the sheath which was strapped upon her back. She took a deep breath, spread her legs apart, letting dark thoughts fill her mind. Fast and fluidly, she sped towards the beast, hacking away at it, dodging the spikes and fireballs as fast as she could. Her attacks were useless though. The creature seemed to have a forcefield surrounding it that only magic could penetrate. The other melee fighters had stepped back, protecting Genis when necessary and Kratos threw in a spell or two, here and there. The cat-like creature paid no attention to the group however, only Aurora. She tried to gain distance, but to no avail. A claw shot out and ripped her mid-section. She clutched it, doubling over in pain.

"Aurora!" Collette shrieked. "Raine. Heal her!" She pleaded. Raine glared at the blind woman, enjoying the moment. "Raine!" Genis yelled to his sister. "What the heck are you doing! Help Aurora!" Kratos snorted in disgust at the teacher's lack of compassion. Then he sprinted forward, thrusting his sword, catching the cat's ankle. It whipped its head around to face the mercenary. If not for the force-field, Kratos could have taken it down easily.

Aurora wobbled a bit before planting her feet in a defensive stance. She chanted softly. Her murmers seemed to suck the air from the space around her. A dark blue glyph circulated under her. "Oh, pure and holy water, purge this world of darkness..." She knew this would drain up all of her mana, but it was all she could do to help. "CLEANSING!" All the water in the atmoshpere was sucked towards the cat and encased it in a sphere of water. The water then took on a sickly green color. The beast made a deafening screech as its body dissolved inside the acidic substance and all that was left of the once mighty creature, was a tiny pile of cold lava and a puddle a water.

Aurora dropped to her hands and knees. It was so tempting to pass out right then and there, but she knew if she did, the only one strong enough to carry her was Kratos. She definetly wasn't going to be helped by that man. He'd just scold her about being a burden again. In all the exitement, she forgot about her wound. She looked down to see three ghastly claw marks. Blood pooled around her quickly. She wrapped one arm tightly around it, keeping most of the blood in so she wouldn't go unconscious from blood loss.

"Aurora!"

"Are you okay!"

"Say something!"

Lloyd, Collette, and Genis rushed to her side.

"S-Stay back. I'm f-fine. Don't touch m-me." Her voice was breathy and uneven. Genis called over his shoulder.

"Raine! Raine! Please come heal her." He pleaded with his sister.

Raine put on a tired facade, leaning against the wall. "I-I can't Genis. I drained my mana healing you guys."

Kratos walked over to the girl as well. He reached down to help her up, but she jerked her body away. "I-I'll be fine. D-Don't touch m-me." She was shaking now, barely able to keep herself up.

"Ridiculous. Let me help you." He said.

"N-No. I don't w-want you to t-touch me." All four of the people around her stared at her strangely. "J-Just don't." She turned away from them.

"Collette." The small blonde turned her head towards the altar where Remiel was waiting. She nodded and stepped forward. The rest of the group followed her, since Aurora obviously wanted to be left alone.

The blue clad swordswoman grabbed her pack and dug around for and apple gel. Finding one, she lifted up her shirt revealing just how gruesome the cuts were. She whimpered a little as she rubbed the red geletain on her stomach. It didn't do much, but it help the pain a little. But just a little. She looked over her shoulder to see Collette obtain her purple and pink angel wings. Smiling, she used most of her strength to stand up. Her body wasn't ready for walking just yet.

After being "gifted" by Cruxis, the group was teleported outside the entrance. Collette took a few steps, then collapsed.

"Collette!" Lloyd exclaimed. He grabbed her by the wrist and helped her up.

"I'm (cough) fine guys. Aurora's the one (cough) we should worry about." Collette forced out the sentence.

"Nonsense." Raine said. "You need to be taken to doctor. Let's head to Triet." Raine hoped to lose the cripple on the jouney back to the desert town.

"It's best not to move Collette. Remeber the angels words." Kratos interjected. "The angel transformation is painful. It is best if we rest her tonight. Besides, I don't think Aurora could make the trek across the desert."

Raine whispered as low as she could. "That's the plan." Kratos picked that little tid-bit up with his angelic hearing. His brow furrowed, creasing his forehead. He had always seen the Professor as a kind, level-headed woman. Who was Raine Sage really? Pushing those thoughts aside, he turned to Lloyd. "Lloyd-"

"Firewood. Gotcha!" He ran off towards the tropical grove a little ways off.

"I'm on the food!" Genis said, grabbing the pots and pans out of a large bag.

"Raine, you help Aurora."

Raine shrugged. "I would if I could, but, I don't have any mana left." Kratos glared at the woman.

"Collette, you should rest." Kratos ordered the girl. "Aurora-"

"Don't tell me what to do." She snapped before he could say anything else. She limped over to Genis and asked to help with dinner. The mage raised an eyebrow, but shrugged. Might as well let her have her way. A couple hours and the campsite was ready. The sun had already gone down, leaving the air without warmth. Genis and Aurora had prepared curry for supper, (Aurora skipped the meal to get some sleep.) even though they were missing some ingredients. Lloyd accused Raine of cooking it, but changed his mind after recieving the end of the teacher's glare. Genis laughed at that earning a smack.

"Are you sure your not hungry Collette?" Lloyd asked.

"Mm-hm. I'll be fine. Don't worry." She looked up at the moon. "I'm going to take a little walk." She announced.

"Want me to join you?" Lloyd asked.

"No, I'll be fine on my own."

Lloyd stared after the girl's white overcoat in disbelief.

"Haha! You got RE-JEC-TED!" Genis howled with laughter. When his laughing ceased, his face scrunched up in confusion.

"What is it Genis?" Lloyd asked.

"Raine?"

"Yes Genis?"

"That right there... was rude. I could've woken Aurora up." He motioned towards the lifeless blue lump Noishe was curled around. "But, you didn't smack me like usual."

"Yeah. You've never really scolded us when we're rude around her."

Raine was at a loss for words. "R-Really? I've never noticed." She shrugged and ate another spoonful of curry. The boys eyed her suspiciously, not buying one bit of it.

Soon, everyone except Kratos and Raine were asleep. They sat on opposite sides of the fire.

"Rough day today eh?" Raine tried to spark a conversation. Kratos looked up at her.

"You need to learn how to preserve your mana better." He said. This took the professor by surprise.

"What do you mean?" She eyed him suspiciously.

"There was no excuse for you to run out of mana today unless you used too much to heal us? Are you saying that you lied about running out of mana?" He questioned.

"N-No. You're right. I should've been more responsible." She turned her head away so he couldn't see her face blush. Kratos sighed deeply which made her look back at him. He was staring at Aurora a few yards off. She could hear him murmur something.

"First Aid." He whispered. A green light engulfed Aurora's body and at least sealed up the cuts, if not heal them completely. Raine's eye twitched in frustration. How could he heal her.

"W-Why did you do that?"

"Do what?"

"Heal her."

"She needs to be healed whether she wants help or not. She doesn't have to know. It won't kill her."

Raine huffed. "Good night." She slid inside her sleeping bag.

"Good night, Raine." He sighed. Oh well. _Guess it's time for another long night watch._ He thought as he gazed at the stars.

* * *

Me: Holy crap...

Lloyd: What?

Me: So close to five thousand words. I'm so HAPPY!

Lloyd: Run! She's gone ma-

Me: (glare)

Lloyd: Nevermind...

Presea: Review please.

Me: I've still got more cookies!


	5. Chapter 4

* * *

Me: Thank you my loyal reviewer. You've got me on a writing kick. XD I will take your advice to heart. Don't worry. The small triangle between Kratos, Aurora, and Raine isn't going to advance anytime soon. In fact, the triangle isn't supposed to be a big part of the fic. Just something to add a little spice. I'll see what I can do about that in this chapter. And about Lloyd and "Ya." I just thought it fit him-

Lloyd: Hey!

Me: But I'm probably overdoing it. Anyway, have another cookie.

Lloyd: I want a cookie!

Me: Will you do the disclaimer?

Lloyd: Maybe... Let me think about it...

Me: (Taps foot impatiently.)

Lloyd: Hm...

Me: (Holds cookie over the trashcan.)

Lloyd: Okay! Yes! I'll do it! Give it to me!

Me: No. You do the disclaimer first.

Lloyd: Fine. DragonLady24 doesn't own Tales of Symphonia. Just her OC, crappy plot development, and short temper. Cookie NOW!

Me: Ugh. You're such a child. Here. Fetch. (Throws cookie far away from herself.)

Lloyd: Bark! Bark!

Me: O.o'... Ooookkkaaayy. Maybe child was a poor word choice. Uh. Enjoy the fic. I hope I don't disappoint!

* * *

Chapter 4: Freaky Fortunes

Pain didn't even begin to describe it. Aurora's whole body ached from the beating she got the day before. Slowly, she sat up using Noishe as a chair. "Thanks boy." She patted the protozoan gone dog. His tail swished back and forth. Listening around the campsite, she heard the voices of Genis, Raine, and Collette, the occasional snort from Lloyd, and Kratos's breaths. She guessed that Lloyd was sleeping peacefully, off in dreamland somewhere. Kratos was being his normal antisocial self, and Raine, Collette, and Genis were chatting happily.

"Good morning Aurora!" Collette beamed at the cripple. "We're headed for Triet to get supplies and then leave for the Ossa Trail."

Raine woke up on the sensible side of te bed that morning_. What was I thinking? I'm such a stupid woman. I let myself get all messed up over a man. What was making me like that? Oh, right... My time of the month. Heh. Even so, I still don't like that cripple being with us. Oh well, she leaves today, so, what do I care. Plus, I might be able to mend whatever damage I've caused to my appearance."_Good morning Aurora." Raine greeted the woman a little more cheerfully today.

Aurora was confused for a second. Didn't the Professor hate her guts? Oh, right. She leaves today. Aurora couldn't help but question herself. Could she really have made it on this journey. Was she just kidding herself. Even if she could make it, why stay? Nobody wanted her. Well, except for the kids, but they don't make the decisions.

"Good morning Raine, Collette."

"Do you want something to eat. I'm sure you'd need some after yesterday." Genis called over the campfire.

"No thanks Genis. I'm fine." Aurora would feel to guilty to eat and run like that. She'd stay and help clean up camp, then leave. Even though part of her would miss the group, the other was ready to get out of that goddess-forsaken desert.

Genis finished making the most important meal of the day and took his pot full of boiling water. An evil glint was in his eye.

"Genis... What're you going to do with that?" Raine asked wearily.

"Oh, nothing." The mage crept over to Lloyd. He couldn't resist. "Wakey wakey Lloyd." He said dumping the hot water onto Lloyd's head. The brunette's blood-shot eyes snapped open.

"The frick was that?!" He screamed. Genis was laughing, and rolling in the sand, clutching his aching sides. He was proud of his practical joke. Lloyd, however, wasn't so pleased.

"You little brat!" He jumped out of his bed and chased Genis around the capsite. The little mage gave up on outrunning him and jumped behind his sister for protection.

"Help sis!"

"C'mere you!" Lloyd grabbed him by the collar.

"Stop that boys. You're being too rough. Save that energy for the trip back to Triet okay?" She flicked a beetle off her coat before slipping it on. Lloyd glared at the smirking silver head before dropping him.

"You got lucky that time." He mumbled. Ploping down on his sheets, the boy put a pillow over his head to block out the sun.

"Not so fast Lloyd. We've procrastinated enough. Get up and help clean the campsite." Raine yanked him out of bed by his two white scarf-thingys. Whatever they're called. Lloyd moaned in protest, but stretched anyway, popping a few bones in his spine. Genis cleaned the dishes with a few good aqua edges, Lloyd rolled up all the sleeping bags, Raine, Collette, and Aurora picked up all of the groups belongings, and Kratos put out the fire. All was good that morning until someone had to go and ruin it. Aurora had broken off from the group after a few minutes on the trail.

"Hey, where are you going Aurora?" Genis asked. The girl turned to face the group.

"I'm leaving." She stated simply.

"What?!" Came three responses. I think you know whose.

"I made a deal with your teacher. I got to go through one seal. That's it. Even then, Kratos told me to leave halfway through the seal."

"Why do you listen to them? We never do." Lloyd was confused.

"That's fine Lloyd. Besides, I don't think I could make it through this journey. I'd only slow you down."

"What makes you think that?" Collette asked.

"Collette, I used up all my mana back there, you worried about me when you should've been worrying about the seal. Then, we had to stop afterwards because I was hurt. Because I made a careless error, and if I continue to make mistakes, it may very well cost a life. I couldn't live with that guilt. Plus, I'm tired of this desert. My body doesn't react very well to heat."

"No way." Lloyd protested. "Did you see what you did to that monster? You destroyed it."

"Yeah! And we had to stop because I was sick from the angel transformation." Collette added.

"..."

Raine turned to Kratos. Kratos looked back. "I think that for once, the kids are right." He stated.

"For once?" Genis muttered, apparently offended by that statement.

Raine sighed. She guessed Aurora deserved a little respect, but only as much as common courtesy required. "Fine, Aurora can stay. But, one more slip-up, and you're leaving."

"I'm not sure. I mean. I was a burden-"

"Just shut-up and follow us already, sheesh!" Lloyd grabbed her arm and pulled her towards Triet. She inhaled deeply at he sudden motion that sent pain shooting through her mid. Lloyd froze in his tracks. "Oops. I-I'm sorry. I forgot about your cuts-"

"Stop it." Aurora composed herself. She was shocked. Her cuts were closed up? That must've been a miracle gel she took yesterday. Little did she know, a ceartain mercenary had helped her out. "You sound like Collette. Stop apologizing."

Collette panicked. "Do I really sound like that? Sorry!" Aurora sighed.

"See what I mean?"

"Yeah. Well... what are we waiting for? Let's head to Triet guys." Lloyd turned and started to walk on the trail again. Collette giggled like a school-girl and skipped along behind him. Raine sighed and rubbed her temples, keeping a slow pace. Aurora smiled, shrugged, and headed off in the direction of Triet. Genis stopped her.

"This means you're coming with us, right?" He asked.

"Yep. I guess so."

The boy beamed. "Alright!"

* * *

The path to Triet was very clear that day. No monster nor bandits roamed its trails. They all made it in record time. The sun wasn't even halfway through its day cycle yet.

"Wow. Great timing considering we slept in." Genis remarked, shielding his eyes from the sun.

Collette stopped her stride and spun around to the Professor. "Can we go to the fortune teller pppplllleeeeeaaaaasssseeee Raine?" She begged using the infamous puppy-dog eyes. Raine sighed. This was Collette's journey after all. She got to do what she wanted. Within reason though, of course.

"Fine."

"Yay! I wonder who my soulmate is?" She thought out loud.

"I think that one's pretty obvious Collette." Genis said.

"Really?" She asked.

"Yeah. It's definetly Lloyd. You two spend almost every waking minute together."

"We... do?"

"Yep."

Raine rolled her eyes. "We need to get supplies. I guess we could split up. Who's going with who?"

Genis was the first to volunteer. "I'll go with you sis. You have all the gald and we need more ingredients."

Kratos voiced his opinion second. "Lloyd, we need to train. You haven't practiced in days." The brunette grumbled in disappointment, but did as he was told and followed the purple clad mercenary outside the city walls.

"Whose gonna go with me?" Collette panicked.

Aurora chuckled at the girls obliviousness. Maybe she could get Collette out of everyone's hair for a little while. At least that would be a little help. "Tell you what." She started. "Collette, I'll take you to the fortune teller and pay for a fortune. How does that sound?" The blonde grinned widely.

"Thank you Aurora! Follow me. The fortune teller is this way." She grabbed the swordswoman's hand and drug her off to that stuffy little fortune-teller tent. The old lady behind a low table greeted them with a snaggle-toothed smile. She played with a crystal ball placed in the center of the platform.

"Why hello dears." She drew out each syllable. "What can Madame Gesibelle do for you today? A friendship fortune maybe? Or perhps a love horoscope?"

"How much is a friendship fortune?" Collette asked.

"Oh dearie. We're having a special on those. Just one-hundred gald." She tapped her long fingernails on the ball. Its milky white liquid swirling inside like a hurricane.

"One-hundred gald?" Collette's voice cracked. "Th-That's pretty expensive." Aurora shrugged and handed over the gald like it was no more than one piece of gald instead of one-hundred. Collette smiled at her and turned towards the gypsy once more.

"Sit girl." The lady commanded. "Give me your left hand." Collette nodded politely and did as she was told. The lady took Collette's hand and flatened it out so it was opened and faced palm up. Then she proceeded to put one hand on the crystal ball while the other traced the creases in Collette's palm. "Now, stare into my crystal and note its color for me. Okay?"

"Yes ma'am." Collette responded obediently.

"Yes." Gesibelle droned and closed her eyes. Her crystal ball flared red under her fingertips. "This boy... Lloyd is it?" Collette brightened up at the sound of Lloyd's name. "Yes. This boy is very caring and headstrong. In the end, he will do anything for you." Gesibelle's eyes opened up once more. "That is all I can do for you sweetie. Would you like a fortune madam?" The lady tuned to Aurora.

"I don't-"

"Oh. C'mon Aurora. This time, do a love one. It'll be fun." Collette bounced up and down on the balls of her feet. Aurora sighed.

"Okay fine. How much is a love horoscope?"

Gesibelle chuckled eerily. "We're also having a special on those too. It's-"

"Let me guess, one-hundred gald?" Aurora faced the woman.

"Oh, so close dear, but no. It is only fifty gald." She smiled at Aurora. "Well?"

Aurora raised an eyebrow, but gave in and handed the lady fifty gald. She repeated the same process she did with Collette except this time, with her right hand. Her crystal's milky white substance grew dark and settled itself in a nice shade of black. Aurora couldn't tell though. She turned her head.

"Collette, what color is it?"

"Black?" Collette was confused. "Isn't love supposed to be bright and happy?"

"Oh dear child, you have a lot to learn. You, however, young lady. Your love will be tragic. You will fall in love with the one who destroyed your life, and then, he'll turn right back around, and ruin it again. And if twice isn't enough, third times the charm dearie." The lady cackled and released her grip on Aurora's appendage. The brunette quickly took her hand back and cradled it as if it were broken. Her eyebrows furrowed together.

"L-Let's go Collette." Aurora suggested.

"Yeah. Sure." Collette hastily agreed and grabbed Aurora's hand like a child would with thier mother. The blue clad girl led the Chosen as far away from that tent as possible before letting go of her hand. Collette was quite frankly, honest with herself.

"I'm scared now." She whispered.

"You and me both." Aurora replied, trying to catch her breath. "Well. That's the last time we go to a fortune teller eh?"

"Yes. Once is plenty enough for me." The klutz wiped the sweat off her forehead.

* * *

The group finished thier day's agenda and went to the inn to relax after a hard day of... nothing really. They all sat in the small lobby on the bottom floor, wondering what to do next.

"Well, it's too late to go to the Ossa Trail." Raine stated.

"It's to late to do anything really." Lloyd said.

"I guess we should all just get some rest and-" _grumble._ Aurora's eyes widened. Right. She hadn't eaten this morning. Everyone gave her odd looks. She wrapped her arms around her stomach gingerly, trying to quiet it without hurting her claw marks.

"That's right! You haven't eaten today have you?" Genis smirked.

"Then let's go get a table in the resturaunt." Kratos said bluntly.

"I don't think that's a good idea. Remember the last time I was there? The manager wasn't to happy with my presence. You even said do yourself Kratos." Aurora put down that idea. "Besides. I'll live. I've gone a week without eating before. A day won't kill me."

"A week?" Lloyd asked in disbelief. "I wouldn't last a day without food."

"You wouldn't last five hours Lloyd." Genis remarked cynacilly. Lloyd's face flushed. He didn't even try to fight back.

"You guys can go ahead and eat. I'll be fine outside. Noishe is wonderful comany." Aurora chuckled.

"Yeah. Noishe seems to like you. He doesn't usually like strangers. What did you do?" Lloyd asked. Aurora shrugged her shoulders.

"I dunno, I've just always had a strong connection with animals, escpecially nocturnal ones for some reason."

"Noc-turnal?" Lloyd was lost.

Genis sighed. "Night creatures Lloyd."

"Oh."

The woman yawned. "I think I'll go join Noishe now. Good night guys." She said as she walked outside.

"Good night." The other five chorused.

"Well?" Raine inquired the group.

"Heh. I don't know about you guys, but I'm starrving." Lloyd proclaimed.

"Of course you are Lloyd." Genis poked his friends shoulder. Raine got a table for them all and sat down beside Kratos. Maybe she could have a normal conversation now that her time was over.

"Do you think any boats will be running with the way things are now?" She asked the mercenary.

"Probably not, but it's the only way to the next seal. We may have to take a ship by force."

Raine about fell out of her seat. So much for a normal conversation. "Y-You mean steal a ship!"

"Yes. But, only as a last resort." They were both silent for a moment, not sure what else to say. "Were you feeling alright yesterday Raine?" He asked. "You weren't yourself."

Raine was relived. At least he knew that wasn't the real her yesterday. "I didn't feel really well." She ran her finger around the rim of her glass, her eyes not leaving his. He broke the gaze to observe the children. Thier plates were empty and they were talking amongst themselves about the day's adventures. "I believe we are done here." Kratos left the table to go pay. Raine sighed. She looked like an idiot yesterday. Not only an idiot, but a mentally insane idiot. She could only be grateful Kratos understood.

* * *

Me: Haha. Yes. A women's excuse for everything! Her period.

Lloyd: Raine on her period? That's scary...

Me: Yep.

Lloyd: (Shudders in fear of mental images.) Review please.


	6. Chapter 5

Me: Yay! another good review. Here, have a cookie from the "I'm sorry I burned you to a crisp" batch I made Genis. (He's still at the ER getting the results.) Now with 50% more apology!

Lloyd: Mmm... apology.

Me: The last few chapters didn't float to well with me, so I wanna apologize for a few things. 1.) My patchwork coverup for Raine's behavior. (No matter how comical it may be.) 2.) Not enough interaction between Kratos and Aurora, yet. It _**IS**_ a KratosxOC fic. And 3.) My frequent updates. And the thought hit me that you all might think Raine dislikes her only because she's competition for Kratos's heart. No, that's just a part of it, she doesn't like Aurora because she's crippled, just like almost every other adult has so far. My explination for her actions were a little off the wall though.

Lloyd: That last chapter didn't settle well with my stomach. (Still has those mental images of Raine on her period stuck in his head.)

Me: Although I have to admit, I enjoyed writing thst last chapter. But, sadly, it doesn't comply with the story's category, which is Romance, not "Suckish Attempt at Humor". I hope this chapter delves a little more into the personalities and relationships of each character. On another note, I've allowed anonymous reviews and plan to leave it that way unless someone misuses that privelege. But, I would perfer you logged in if you were a member, or at least write your name in the review so I know who to thank. Okay, Lloyd, disclaimer.

Lloyd: Whatever. DragonLady24 doesn't own Tales of Symphonia, just her OC and obsession with updating.

Me: I'm just very impatient!

Lloyd: That's no excuse.

Me: (Sigh.) I know. Enjoy the fic. I feel a long one coming on.

* * *

Chapter 5: Inner Child

Aurora stretched her arms upward, relieving them from their scrunched up posistion they'd been in the night before. Noishe let out long yawn, standing up and doing the doggie down stretch that all animals seemed to do. The brunette ran her fingers through her unruly mane, managing to make it look halfway decent. Giving up on her hair, she grabbed her pack and felt around for its contents. Four apple gels, still one orange gel, two panacea bottles, and a life bottle. She's made sure to stock up a little more on items. If the next seal was anything like the last, she was going to need it. Her hand dug around a little more until she found what she'd been searching for. A mint leaf. Popping it in her mouth, she chewed it slowly so its scent could cover up her morning breath. A smile found its home on her lips. Finally, the group was headed for the Ossa Trail. More importantly, out of the desert. Aurora hopped up and smoothed out her clothing, trying to uncrease all of the wrinkles.

"Good morning Aurora." An icy voice greeted her from the other side of the stable. "We're leaving in five minutes, I hope you're prepared." Raine warned her before walking back out of the room. Aurora sighed and let Noishe lead her to th group.

"Good morning." She smiled warmly at her newfound friends.

"Hello!" The Chosen beamed at the cripple. Even though she couldn't see it, Aurora could always hear the smile in her voice. She had a very cheery disposition.

"Hi Aurora. Sleep well?" Genis asked, smoothing down on of his hair's spikes.

"Just fine thank you." She replied. A gloved hand clapped her shoulder.

"Hey Aurora. Does your stomach feel any better." The teenage swordsman asked. He had just recently woken (or been woken) up, and his hair looked like its own personal mini-tornado had run a course right through his head. Genis burst out lauging and Collette giggled turning a delicate shade of pink. "W-What?" The bed-headed swordsman took a defensive step back. Unable to form a coherent scentence, Genis just took a brush and shoved it in his hands. Lloyd's eyes widened in realization. Blushing madly, he spun around and started yanking the brush through his brown locks. It made a large ripping noise with every yank. Aurora cringed at the all to familiar sound, but asked,

"Lloyd, can I see that after you?"

The brush yanked the boy's hair so hard, he couldn't hear the swordsgirl through the ringing in his ears. Genis snickered.

"That might be a while. Here use my sister's."

Aurora paled. "Um, no, I'll wait for Lloyd to finish. It's okay." Genis sighed and rolled his eyes.

"What is it with you and my sister? It's only been three days, and its like you two have a pact that forces you two to be mortal enemies."

"That's a very lengthy simile."

"You didn't answer my question."

Aurora sighed. "Adults... just don't like people like me. Most people are blinded or maimed for crimes they've comitted. It's very natural, your sister's dislike for me."

Genis huffed. "Adults don't know anything. You're just a person like everybody else- wait... Did you... commit a crime?"

Aurora chuckled. "Not that I know of."

"Okay then. That settles that. I'll just tell Raine your innocent of any crimes and you two can be friends!" Genis chattered exitedely.

"It doesn't quite work that way Genis." Aurora's brow furrowed. "If you tell her that, she'll think I made you do it. That wouldn't help anything. In fact, it would probably shatter the fragile trust she has for me now. I'll earn her friendship fair and square, if at all possible." Genis's upbeat aura deflated.

"If you say so." He stalked off. It pained Aurora to deal that sliver of truth to Genis. Children didn't understand hate. Hate is pretty much what seperates a child from an adult. Children see people more for who they are. It doesn't matter what race, or what disabilities a person had, all a child saw was a possible friend. Adults, on the other hand, judged people by thier outside. If they had scars or were maimed, they were a bad person with a black past. If they had a family, the perfect life, all you could ask for, they were a good person. Aurora had seen how wrong those judgements were the hard way. After that, she chose to get in touch with her inner child. She usually gravitated towards little ones. That must be why she was such close friends with Lloyd, Collette, and Genis. A scream brought Aurora back to reality. She sighed. Oh yeah. Lloyd was trying to comb his hair.

"Lloyd. How did you manage _that?"_ Raine appeared when she heard him yell.

The swordsman was whimpering. The once fresh brush now held clods of brown hair which didn't seem to want to detatch from his head.

"Here Lloyd, I can help." Aurora announced.

"Really?" Both him and the Professor asked skeptically. Aurora nodded and held her hand out expectantly. Lloyd raised an eyebrow at the woman, but sighed and placed the handle of the brush under the cripple's hand. She gingerly felt her way around the brush, winding her fingers through the teeth. She gently tugged the brush towards herself, working her hands through his hair and tugging it in the opposite direction. In a total of ten seconds, Lloyd's head was brush-free.

"Now," Aurora handed him the brush. "Don't yank the brush carelessly through your hair. It just makes the situation worse as you can see. Take it slow and gently pull it through one strand at a time." Lloyd blushed and ran off with the brush. Raine raised an inquisitive brow.

"How did you do that?" She asked.

"When I was little, my friend Nida would always make me decorate her hair. It got a little out of hand sometimes though. You get to learn a few things here and there." Aurora shrugged.

Raine's eye twitched at her plausible explination. "Fine. Please go wait by the gate. I've already told Genis and Collette the deadline of thier stay." Ranie said. Aurora nodded and walked off towards the gate with Noishe.

* * *

Lloyd took Aurora's advice, carefully taking out knots one by one.

"What are you doing?" A voice asked. The teen turned to face the person.

"Oh. Hi Kratos. I was just fixing my hair- uh... That didn't sound right." Lloyd shuddered and laid the brush beside him. He had only done half the job leaving one side of his hair perfect and the other, a tumble-weed. Kratos sighed.

"If you started, you might as well finish. Your hair looks ridiculous, and we won't stay inconspicuous for long." He stated. Lloyd coughed into his fist, trying to hide his embarassment.

"Um, yeah. I guess." He picked up the brush and resumed his tenacious task. Kratos rubbed his temples and stalked off to a vendor. Buying supplies would get his mind off his hairstylist of a son. Dear goddess. Anna would kill Kratos if she were alive to see what they're son had become, all because he couldn't find him.

"What do you want sir?" An old man asked the mercenary.

"Three apple gels, three orange gels, and a life bottle please."

* * *

Collette spent the rest of her morning sight seeing. Triet was actually very pretty. The sun glowed warmly in the lake as Collette sat on the dock, dipping her toes in the icy water from time to time. Lloyd, having done a superb job on his hair with Aurora's styling tips, sat down beside the tiny blonde.

"Hi Lloyd." She beamed at the brunette.

"Hey Collette. What're you doing out here?" The swordsman asked.

"I was just watching the sun."

"Won't that hurt your eyes?"

"No silly. In the lake. See?" She pointed a slender finger at the orange globe in the water. Lloyd's gaze followed her arm towards the lake. He smiled.

"Wow. It is pretty. Y'know, views like this make me feel lucky to have my sight." The brunette stuck one of his fingers in the water, creating a ripple that distorted the sun's image. Collette looked down at her feet.

"I wish Aurora could see it. Come to think of it... Lloyd."

"Yeah Collette."

"Aurora doesn't even know what _we_ look like."

Lloyd blinked. "Y-You're right. She doesn't. Wow. That's really wierd. She just knows us by voice."

"Yeah..."

"Well, we could always describe ourselves to her. Hey. We could ask her what she thinks we look like. I wonder what she would say." Lloyd stared into the lake, as if trying to stare down answers from it.

"That sounds like fun. Let's ask her tonight!" Collette regained her smile. Lloyd returned the favor.

* * *

A few hours passed and Aurora was about to fall asleep again waiting for the group. So much for leaving in five minutes. She sighed and sat down beside Noishe.

"Hi boy."

"Whine."

"I think we've been lied to."

"Whine. Whine."

"I know. You deal with this a lot?"

"Bark."

"Really. Well, I'm just glad I have a group to wait on." She smiled and patted the "dog's" teal head. His tail swung back and forth hypnotizingly. Like a clock, you could almost hear time passing in a tick, tock, tick, tock, manner. Aurora sneezed due to all the sand collecting in her nose. Shaking her head, she summoned her harp and plucked quietly. The protozoan laid its head between its paws and drifted off to sleep. The mucisian listened to the snoring animal. She chuckled. "Why does everyone do that when I play?" She asked herself.

"Hey!" Someone called. It was Genis running over to her with Lloyd and Collette trailing him. Aurora sighed, standing up.

"You're a little late don't you think?" She asked. The harp flickered and returned to its mana state.

"S-sorry." Lloyd panted. "W-We totally forgot that we were supposed to leave early."

"It's fine. I just thought that you had abandoned me." She smiled slyly. "But, I kept Noishe here hostage because I knew you'd come back for him. Right boy?"

"Whine."

Collette giggled. "Let's go. I think Mr. Kratos is waiting outside with Raine."

Kratos was leaning against the walls of the gate while Raine blathered on about going across land to get to Palmacoasta. He'd already told her that it was to dangerous and the group would surely perish, but did she listen? No, of course not. The mercenary was ready to take his life by the time the kids arrived. Where were they anyway? It's an was three hours past time to leave.

"Hi. We're ready to go!" Collette waved her hand up high in the air. Raine's mouth stopped its movement and frowned.

"Where have you been?" She asked. Of course, Aurora being the adult, she got the punishment of Raine's scolding. "I told you we had to leave in five minutes. Five! And it's been... what now?"

"Three hours. Three... painful... hours..." Kratos muttered to himself. Raine didn't hear him.

"You." The healer pointed a finger at the cripple. "You should've gone and looked for them!"

Aurora stepped forward. "You told me to wait by the gate. I did as I was told. Don't yell at me for something you ordered me to do."

"It should've been common sense! Your so blind you couldn't see that?" Oh, that did it.

"My eyesight does not impair my ability to think logically Raine..." Aurora's glare was scary even without her eyes.

"Well then, I guess something else is barring your mind from normal function, because you didn't find them."

"If you were so worried about it, why didn't you find them."

"You... filthy cripple!" Raine put her life at risk by slapping Aurora, leaving a blood red hand print on her cheek. The blue clad girl took a deep breath to keep herself from lashing out at the teacher with her sword. It would've been so easy to, but she couldn't stand the thought of losing the bond she had with the children of the group.

"Okay..." Genis took two steps back. "I think we should leave now. It's almost noon, and, uh, y-you know how it is. Like, really hot."

Aurora sighed. "Yes, you're right Genis, let be going then. It's useless to fight now anyways."

Raine huffed. "I guess your right. Standing here and arguing like children is just going to make us waste even more time."

"If you two children are done trying to outdo each other, we'll leave." Kratos walked past them all, heading towards the Ossa Trail. Collette and Lloyd looked at each other before following Kratos. Genis took his sister's wrist.

"C'mon Raine." Raine begrudgingly let her younger brother lead her. Aurora let out an exasperated sigh.

"I have a feeling this is going to be a long journey."

* * *

Time passed slowly for the group. Little could be done entertainment wise in that wasteland and chatting had its limits. The sun now posistioned itself in the middle of the sky, making it the hottest part of the day. Today was particularly warm with the storm brewing between Raine and Aurora. The silver head half-elf walked behind the others with Genis. The only thing serperating them and the swordswoman was Lloyd and Collette. It's a good thing Raine liked Lloyd and Collette.

Aurora in an agitated state was one word. Scary. Okay two words. Very, scary. So much for being a burden. Not a single enemy that dared to challenge the group that day lasted more than five seconds.

"Are, uh, you okay... Aurora?" Lloyd asked cautiously, being aware of the sword she refused to sheath.

"Yes, quite fine actually." She replied bluntly. A drop of blood trickled down the length of her sword and dropped to the ground below.

"You sure-"

"Yes." She hissed before he could reply.

Collette walked a little closer to the red clad teen. Her bright blue eyes bored into his. She whispered almost inaudibly. "I'm scared."

Lloyd frowned. "Me too." He mouthed.

Of course, the only one unaffected by this fued was Kratos, the man of stone. To him, this journey was just business. It's members and their feelings didn't account for anything. They wouldn't live through the end anyways so why get attatched? Looking over his shoulder, he saw the poor condition Aurora left her sword in.

"Clean your sword Aurora or it will rust and you will be of no use to us." He ordered. The girls eyebrow twitched, but she did as she was comanded and pulled out her bloodstained cloth. She pressed down hard on the metal, dragging the canvas down the one side then the other. Her hand didn't even flinch when she cut her finger. Everyone inched slowly away from the woman.

This tense silence lasted all the way to their destination. Everyone sighed, happy to be out of the desert. It seemed to have an effect on the two women of the group. Both of thier grips loosened on the respective weapons. Feeling a little more secure, Lloyd tried to spark up a conversation between the group.

"So, its great to finally leave that desert eh guys."

No answer. Collette frowned at the lack of response and replied to the question herself.

"Mm-hm. I was sweating so much. It's much more comfortable here."

A few grumbles came from the rest. Lloyd sighed, giving up on friendly interaction. The challenge now, wasn't the heat, but an agrivated group of people... and a really steep climb. "Man, when is this ever gonna end?"

"Just be glad it isn't hot anymore Lloyd." Genis droned. His hand ached from his sister's vice grip.

"Stop!" A disembodied voice commanded. Everyone, excluding Aurora, looked in the wrong directions. She was the only one faced in the right direction ironically, up. To bad she couldn't warn the rest in time. A heavily endowed girl dropped from the top of the cliff. "Alright. Which one of you is the Chosen of Mana?"

"Oh! That's me." Collette smiled warmly at the girl. The rest sighed at her stupidity.

"Prepare to die!" The girl darted forward, only to be stopped by Aurora.

"You'll not lay a finger on her." She raised her sword. Then realized something. When the assasin stepped forward, it made a thunk sound. Huh? Since when were mountains made of wood?

"Please don't be mean." Collette tried to intervene, but her klutziness never ceased to fail her.

_Click._

"Whoops!" Collette cried.

"Uh-oh." Genis moaned. Both Aurora and the mysterious girl fell into a trap-door.

"Well, that's inconvinient." Raine stared down the hole. A smirk appeared on her face.

"Aurora!" Lloyd yelled into the dark void. Silence.

"Hello!" Collette called. More silence. She stareted to whimper. "Oh-no! I did it again. Please say somthing Aurora! Hello? Hello!" A tear trickled down her cheek.

"No Collette. It's okay. Really!" Genis tried to comfort the Chosen. Lloyd stuck his head inside.

"Is she dead?"

"Dead!" Collete cried.

"You're not helping Lloyd." Genis kicked him, then went into a long explination about wieght and velocity that I'm not going to type, because, well, I'm lazy. This seemed to offer Collette a little consolement. She sniffed and wiped the tear trails off her cheeks.

"Well then, let us be going." Kratos announced wihile observing the trail. Lloyd looked over his shoulder accusingly.

"Aurora just fell down a hole and you're just gonna leave her here?"

Kratos rolled his eyes. "We can do nothing about that right now. We have niether a rope or a long stick. All we can do is hope for the best. For right now, it would be in our best intrests to keep moving. There is limited area to fight properly and the footing is poor." Lloyd sighed. The man had a point. He turned to the rest.

"Okay guys let's-"

"I"M VERY SORRY AURORA!" Collette yelled at the top of her lungs down the hole. Sighs came from her companions.

* * *

Augh. What happened? Oh, right. Dropped fifteen feet with a person landing on top of you. Swell. Aurora raised a hand and tapped the woman's shoulder.

"Please get off." The other girl's head shot up.

"W-Wha, huh? Where am I. H-Hey get away from me!" She jumped up with ease and pulled out what seemed to be cards. Aurora groaned sitting up. The fall didn't help the scratches very much.

"If I remember correclty, you fell on me."

"Oh. Sorry." She blushed.

"Sorry? I'm your enemy. Why are you apologizing?"

"Uh-uh..."

The swordswoman smiled. "Thanks anyway."

"R-Right. How are we going to get out of here." The raven haired lady asked herself. She looked around the cavern. "Ugh! It's too dark! I can't see a thing."

"Then I'll guide you."

"How could you do that. No offense, but your blind. You won't be any help."

Aurora frowned. "I've managed to get around using my ears thank you very much. I have no need for light."

"Really?" She asked skeptically.

"Yes. I use my own version of echo-location."

"Okay then. You'd better get us out of here..."

"Aurora."

"Sheena."

"Well, then Sheena. Until we get out of this place, you and I are partners."

"_Guess_ so." She shrugged.

The two girls found thier way through the tunnels of the underground laybrinth. They'd gotten mixed up a few times and ended up going in circles without noticing it. They spent hours in that dark, sun deprived cave. Aurora was about to give up, when she Sheena saw a small sliver of light.

"Oh! Keep going forward. C'mon." Sheena took over the lead and drug the other girl behind her.

"YOU SHALL NOT PASS!" A voice boomed. The two froze in thier tracks. Sheena could barely make out a silhouette of a skeleton with four arms. A light flashed and swords appeared in its hands. Behind her, she heard a _shing._ Aurora had unsheathed her sword.

"Get ready." She told Sheena. The girl noded and pulled out her cards. All three were a blur. It was hard for the women to keep track of each other much less the monster. There attacks made slow progress with it. The monster seemed to have no problems navigating whatsoever. It easily batted Sheena into a wall. A streak of blood ran down her face. Giving up, The ninja fell on her bottom and waited for the end, but it never came. She looked up. Aurora had taken the blow head on. A nasty gash made its home on her face. The sword wielder swaolled back tears.

"You picked the wrong day and the wrong girl." She whispered. Engaging the skeleton head on, she slashed away at it ribcage, trying to break it in half. Sheena was still in a state of shock. She watched the two duel in the dim light. As t continued, more and more blood stained the floor. Aurora's breaths became short and jagged. The creature knocked her back into a wall. The girl slumped down to her knees.

"Die." She whispered menacingly. Using the last of her strength, Aurora lauched herself in the air. With her sword raised, she pierced the almot indistructable bones of the monster. Its screech caused Sheena to clap her hands over her ears. Slowly, the thing disinigrated into dust. Aurora gasped and fell forward hitting the cold, unforgiving floor. Cuts decorated her body and left her to soak in a warm puddle of blood.

_Why can't I just last one battle without draining all of my energy. Argh. Oh well. Maybe death will come early._ She smiled to herself and let sleep come.

Sheena finally registered that Aurora was fatally injured and jumped up. It wasn't a pretty sight. Her hair was a tangled, bloody mess, and her face was distorted with many soon to be scars. Keeping her self from panicking, she wraooed her arms around the girls waist and dragged her to the large wooden door. Her foot lahed out and knocked it over. Her eyes squinte in the light. Her clothes were dirty as well but not nearly as close to Aurora's. With all her energy drained, the raven head dropped the girl on the dirt path and leaned against the mountain. Of course with her luck...

"Aurora!" Collette cried as she ran down the path. The rest followed quickly. Lloyd looked from his companion to the assasin making an inference.

"What the hell did you do to her?" He ripped out his twin blades. Kratos even gasped at the mutilated lump called Aurora, na ddrew his weapons as well.

"Wait! I can explain!" She tried to calm their fury, but to no avail. The group advanced toward her. She turned her head to the half dead girl. "I'm sorry." She then puffed away in a flurry of smoke. Collette was the first to the girl.

"Raine. Help!" She wa bent over Aurora with tears streaming down her face. "This is all my fault." She said. Raine wasn't heartless enough to let her die. She rushed over and cast various heling spells. It helped the bleeding but didn't seal up the cuts very well. Kratos joined her and cast a few first-aid spells of his own to help. When they finished, she was still a mess, but without the fresh blood.

"Is she going to be okay?" Collette asked. Raine nodded.

"We need to leave quickly. I feel an evil presence coming from that cave." Kratos said. Genis snorted.

"How?"

Kratos sighed. "I'll carry Aurora. The rest of you get the supplies." He bent down on one knee and tried to scoop her up 'bridal' style. He flinched on contact. She was... warm? He hadn't felt a change in temperature for over four-thousand years.

"You going to be okay?" Genis asked. Kratos shook his head.

"Yes." He proceeded to pick her up. She was actually very light. He then felt the full force of her body heat. After centuries of feeling nothing, this shocked him. It wansn't the bad kind of shock. In fact, he hated to admit it, but he enjoyed the warmth. Of course, being the bearer of the injured one led to having Collette stuck to his side. She constantly asked if she was okay, or if she was breathing. His head ached about half-way to Izoold. Trying to filter out the babble of the worried Chosen, he looked down at the broken girl. _If she keeps doing this_ _after something happens, _He thought, _she'll have to leave. This is breaking the Chosen's focus on the journey._ Too bad he wasn't quite ready to give up on her yet. This was one anomoly he was going to figure out. Even if it killed him.

* * *

Me: There you have it folks. Finally, some interaction between the two stars of the fic. (Even if one of them was unconcious.)

Lloyd: You could've done a little better with that.

Me: Shut up. It's one o'clock in the freakin' morning. What more do you want from me.

Lloyd: Whatever.

Me: (Rubs eyes.) Please review while I sleep. The offer for cookies is still availible.


	7. Chapter 6

Me: Hello to all! I would normally wait for my loyal reviewer to review and tell me what the heck I'm doing wrong, but I'm just to darn impatient. Sorry -.-' Here, have TWO cookies AnimeAngel809. Without those reviews, I would've stopped long ago. The good news is, Genis was discharged today. Yaysees! (Hugs Genis.)

Genis: Can't.. Breathe...

Me: Whoops! Sorry.

Zelos: Wow. You put him in the hospital after two chapters. Can you show me how you did it.

Me: No.

Zelos: Why? C'mon my darling hunny. You can tell Zelos anything.

Me: Do you want to be next girly boy? Do the disclaimer or you'll wake up tomorrow without that shiny red hair.

Zelos: Fine my fiesty babe.

Me: Don't push your luck.

Zelos: DragonLady24 doesn't own Tales of Symphonia.

Me: Hey? Anyone know where Lloyd is?

Genis: In the closet hiding from you.

Lloyd: Argh! Genis! I'll kill you.

Genis: XP

Me: Get back here!

Lloyd: Aw man.

Me: (Holding Lloyd down by his scarves) Enjoy. This should be an interesting chapter.

* * *

Chapter 6: The Importance of Knocking.

"Are you sure she's okay?"

"Yes Chosen."

"Really sure? Check her pulse!"

Kratos sighed. For the twentieth time today, he grabbed Aurora's wrist and checked for a pulse. The warm blood pulsated under his fingers.

"Yes, she's alive. Why don't you go inform Genis and Lloyd."

"Okay!" The girl scurried off to her friends. Finally, peace and quiet. If that girl had anything in her head, it was a large conscience. Ever since they left the Ossa trail, she'd ask how Aurora was every five minutes, and every minutes she was fine. It was quite irritating, escpecially when she asked for her pulse. He had to hold her in an awkward fashion to place his hands in the correct spot on her wrist. Once more, he looked down at the cripple. Her body was quite petite. It made the wounds she recived look like things out of a horror novel. That, and her messy head. Dried blood and hair were two things that didn't mix. But, one thing stood out among the rest. A long bloody scar traved from one side of her face, across her nose, to the other side. The blood loss had made her face pale. He stared at it and wondered what in that cave could make a gash like that. It wasn't very clean, and not meant to kill, so it couldn't have been the assasin. She started to get heavy so he shifted her slightly. A tangle of bloody hair fell away from her face. Kratos gasped lightly.

She had slightly pointed ears.

If Raine found out, she would surely be pissed. On top of being a crippled she was now a half-elf. This girl, kind and friendly as she may be, would be looked upon as the most unholy creature that ever walked the earth to anybody who saw her. The man quickly covered up her ear with more hair. He shook his head at the woman and looked forward again.

The teacher would cast an angry glare towards Aurora ever so often. Being the leader of the group she couldn't stare for to long. She had enough sense not to start an argument, but the fact the Kratos was holding the cripple irked her to no end. She almost regretted healing her back at the Ossa trail.

The Chosen's guilt hadn't failed her yet.

"P-Please. Just check her pulse on more time. Make sure she's alive. Please mister Kratos!" Her eyes looked up at him with desperation. He rolled his eyes and got the unconcious girl in position.

Aurora faded back into consciousness. The bridge of her nose was pressed up against something warm and fleshy. Her body was lifted up and down as if something were breathing under her. Then she noticed that an arm was holding her from the back and the hand held her up from the underside of her knees. Another hand grabbed her own lifeless one and placed it in her lap. Then fleshy thing against her nose vibrated.

"Fine. I'll check-"

Wait, that was Kratos's voice. Kratos was carrying her?

"Ah!" She pushed herself forcefully off his chest and landed flat on her back. Everyone stared at the girl as she slowly pushed herself up into a sitting posistion. Kratos could hear her grumble something about 'no touching' with his angelic hearing. The mercenary put his hand to his forehead.

"Yes. She's alive."

"Oh Aurora, I'm so sorry. This was all my fault!" The Chosen picked the swordswoman up in a tight hug.

"What happened?" Aurora gasped for air.

"Oops. Sorry!" The blonde released her grip and the girl slunk to the ground, rubbing her head. Two more sets of arms wrapped around her again.

"Yeah! You're alive."

"Welcome back."

"Need... air... Genis... Lloyd..." When they let her go she asked, "I don't suppose you want to hug me too, do you Raine?"

The healer 'hmphed' in response. Lloyd ignored his unsympathetic teacher and beamed at Aurora.

"Man, you sure can take a beating Aurora. We thought you were going to die there for a second."

Said girl's eyebrows scrunched up. "Thank you Lloyd, that's very... encouraging."

"Your welcome."

Genis sighed. "Are you feeling okay?"

Sure. Never better Genis. Just like one-thousand pounds of sword had been lodged into her body but that's it. That, and a headache, but nothing to serious. "Yes, Genis. I feel fine. Would you by any chance know where we are.?"

"Yeah. We were headed for Izoold. We're almost there. Do you need help walking? Kratos could carry you again."

Aurora paled. "No thanks. I can walk." She grunted and stood up. Her legs were a little unsteady, but she managed a standing posistion. "See? I'm fine." Her frame shook slightly as she walked past the five. Not hearing any footsteps, the girl turned around. "Well, come on. We've got a boat to catch if we're going to get to Palmacoasta. Sitting here isn't going to do us any good."

The rest looked at her strangely.

"What?"

"You look like a zombie Aurora. I think you'd better let us lead the way." Genis said.

"Oh." Aurora blushed and walked behind them.

The next few hours were killing her bones. She was sore from head to toe after only thirty-minutes. She put her head down and muttered something. "Clear waters from above, heal that which ails me. Heaven's Tear." A soft blue glow surrounded her for one subliminal instant, and healed most of the minor cuts and brusies. "Much better." She whispered.

Raine sighed and led the group onwards. Her mood worsened with each step. All she could think of was the boat trip she'd soon be taking. On the other hand, Aurora seemed to be getting happier. She loved the ocean. Well, not just the ocean, but water in general. It reminded her of home.

"Oh look!" Collette pointed frontwards. "I can see the ocean from here!" The rest of the group stared at her.

"Uh, do you need Raine to check your eyes Collette? The ocean isn't anywhere in sight." Lloyd said.

Collette frowned. "Yes it is! Look!" She stretched her arm out farther as if it would make the horizon come closer.

"Are you sick?" Genis asked. Collette's brows furrowed.

"Why can't you guys see it?"

"Chosen, I believe that the angel transformation has increased your senses. You may be able to see the ocean, but the rest of us can not." Kratos announced.

"Oh. I'm sorry. I kind of whish I was normal now." The girl frowned and put a hand to her mouth. Aurora smiled and patted the girl on he shoulder.

"Just think of yourself as lucky for having more than others." She smiled. The blonde gasped, realizing how rude that must've sounded, complaining about enhanced sight when her own companion lost that privelege.

They walked on, and soon, the atmosphere settled. Lloyd went back to his hobby of interviewing Aurora.

"What was it like? How did you react when you were blinded?"

"Hm... I went into shock for a few months I guess. Those were probably the worst times days of my life. Wait, no. Scratch that. Second."

"Did you cry? Ow!" Kratos took the liberty of smacking Lloyd upside the head. Aurora chuckled.

"Yes. I finally realized that there was nothing I could do after a while, and regained my sanity."

"What what were the worst?" Genis asked.

"Worst what Genis?"

"The worst days of your life."

"You are to young to know."

"Aw, c'mon! I'm twelve! I think I'm old enough to know."

Aurora sighed. "No Genis, maybe when you're older. Maybe."

Genis crossed his arms. "Fine then. Don't tell me."

"Sounds good to me."

* * *

They reached Izoold about sundown. Raine was about to burst with frustration. Going across the land would be so much easier. Why did Kratos have to make things so complicated?

"It's too late to get a ship. Let's go to the inn." Genis said. He really liked inns for some reason.

"Yeah, I'm tired. And I bet Kratos is too from carrying Aurora all day." Lloyd added. Aurora glared, then sighed. Was she that heavy?

Izoold inn was very tiny. They'd rented out all the rooms except for two. Raine roomed with Collette, Lloyd with Genis, and Kratos by himself. Aurora (still on the 'buy your own stuff' order from Raine) bought her own room. The little town let her stay; they needed all the money they could get. The set up was basically the same as Triet. The girls got the rooms upstairs and the guys got the downstairs.

Genis left his room to go find Raine. He went upstairs and knocked on the wood.

"Yes?" Raine opened the door.

"Hey sis. This inn doesn't have anythig to eat, so I'll go make some outside. Lloyd is going with me. He'll come and get you when its done."

"Okay."

Genis stood there expectantly.

"What?" Raine asked.

"You have the ingredients. Duh."

"Oh, sorry. Here."

"Thanks. See you in a little while."

Aurora had asked the lady that worked there to bring her something to wash up in. She wasn't going to sit there in dried blood. A knock came from the door. It opened to reveal the employee. She had a washtub laying beside her.

"I brought you your bath. Uh, would you like me to repair your clothes too miss?" The woman asked. Aurora shrugged and let her in. After handing off her clothes, she got in the wash. The water was warm and helped her ache a little. She inhaled the scent of the soap she put in.

"This is nice." She said to herself. "It's only been, what, two years since I've bathed in something other than a lake or creek." She chuckled and swirled the water around with a delicate finger. Her throat hummed a familiar tune as she scrubbed the stubborn blood off her skin.

* * *

"Okay Lloyd, food's ready, could you go tell everyone?"

"Sure Genis. C-Can I have a taste first?"

"No Lloyd. Go-get-everyone."

Lloyd sighed and walked empty stomached to the inn. He went to Kratos's room first.

"Yes Lloyd?"

"Food's outside, um..."

Kratos cocked his head. "Yes?"

"Could you get the others? I want to get some of the food before it gets cold." Lloyd fidgeted with his hands. The mercenary rolled his eyes.

"Yes, I suppose I could fetch them."

"All right! Thanks Kratos." Lloyd followed his gut right out the door. Kratos sighed and went to go get the females of the group.

(You see what's being set up here right? Hehe...)

The swordsman knocked on Raine and Collette's room. This time, Collette answered.

"Oh, hi Mr. Kratos. Do you need something?"

"Lloyd sent me to tell you that dinner's ready if you're hungry."

"Okay! Raine already left, I'll just catch up with her." Collette skipped out the door and down the stairs.

"Ah!"

Or... fell down the stairs. Kratos sighed and went to get Aurora.

* * *

Finally, her favorite part. Time to wash hair. Taking a deep breath, the swordswoman dunked her head under the water.

_Knock knock._

_..._

_Knock Knock_

"Aurora?"

...

_Knock knock._

The man's patience was running thin.

Aurora popped her head out of the water, her lungs screaming for air.

_Click._

"Aurora? Are you even-"

Her eyebrows shot up. Jumping out of the warm bath, she threw herself against the door, managing to give Kratos a slight concussion.

"Augh. Aurora, what are you doing?" The man rubbed his aching head.

"Didn't you ever learn to knock?" She was shaking against the door because of what might have happened, and it was so freaking cold.

"I did. Six times."

"Well, you still shouldn't have opened the door anyways. Escpecially when-" She covered her mouth before finishing that scentence.

"When what?" He asked suspiciously. Someone tapped his shoulder.

"Excuse me sir." He turned around to see an employee, and she was carrying... Aurora's clothes. Great. He muttered a quick apology before walking back down the stairs. The girl watched him strangely before knocking on the door. Aurora cracked it open a bit before quickly grabbing her clothes and slamming the door.

"Thank you!" She called to the woman. Her face was blood red. No way that just happened. She walked over to a wall and started to bang her head against it. Ugh. Stupid stupid men.

* * *

"Is Aurora coming to dinner?" Collette asked Kratos when he retuned.

"I don't think so Chosen." He replied bluntly and sat down beside the fire.

* * *

Me: X3 I had so much fun writing that chapter. Even though it was short. (Yawn.) Time for bed.

Lloyd: Why do you write these at night?

Me: Beacuse my parents would freak if they knew I had a profile on something like this. They're very opposed to things like myspace and facebook.

Genis: Really?

Me: Yep, which reminds me. I prbably won't update tomorrow. (Gasp!) My dad doesn't have to work and he'll probably play WoW all night. (That stands for World of Warcraft for all you non-geek peoples) But, I know I will Saturday. I'm going over to my grandma's. She let's me do anything. In fact, I wrote both three and four plus half of five all night at her house the other day. So, in short, I'll update on Sunday-Thursday nights. I hope you all appreciate me depriving myself of sleep for you to enjoy this story! Review please!


	8. Chapter 7

Me: Would you get over it Lloyd.

Lloyd: B-But, only guys do that.

Me: I find that sexist.

Lloyd: No normal girl would ever play.

Me: **ARE YOU CALLING ME A GIRLY GIRL?!**

Lloyd: Please don't hurt me- um...

Me: (Fist in the air about to punch Lloyd) What?

Lloyd: The readers are here.

Me: Oh. Hehe. (Quickly puts hand behind back) 'Sup guys. I guess I do get to update tonight. Yay!

Lloyd: Freak.

Me: (Kicks Lloyd off a conveniently placed cliff) Alright. Thank you again reviewer. I always look forward to seeing more reviews appear. I check every hour for a new one after I've posted a new chapter. Forget the cookies. Here, have a nice, big, magic cake.

Genis: Magic- Cake?

Me: Mm-hm. Just think of your favorite flavor of cake, and that's what the magic cake becomes. Everyone else who reviews gets a cake, but you also get a cookie if you just read. Oh, and Angel, please PM me on what you thought was going to happen before you knew Aurora was a half-elf. I would really like to know. You'll probably change your theories a lot through this fic. I've got a ton of unusual and unorthodox events planned for the future. I've got an especisally good reason for Kratos being able to feel Aurora's body heat. But you'll have to wait 'till later. A lot later, to find out. And yes, this is named Boat-Jacking just for you. Enjoy the fic. I've got a sexist to pummel. (Jumps down cliff and lands on Lloyd) GIRLS CAN PLAY THE DRUMS TOO!

Genis: Ooookkkaaaaaayyy... DragonLady24 doesn't own Tales of Symphonia. But she does own a drumset.

* * *

Chapter Seven: Boat-Jacking and an Unanticipated Rescue.

Aurora sat up groggily. What a night last night. Stupid Kratos. He should know better than to open a door to a woman's room. Her feet touched the floor, and she felt around for her pack. Her hand dug around in it for a mint leaf, but hit something hard. She pulled out a wooden brush. Huh? Who put that in there? Oh well. If you've got it, use it. It felt wonderful to have nice hair again. Placing the brush back, she put a mint leaf into her mouth. The pack was then slung over her shoulder.

"Today, we find a boat." She smiled to herself and walked out of the room.

* * *

"We can still travel across land. It's not to late." Raine confronted Kratos.

"No. We are already here. Going across land would be redundant." He told her.

"But it will be impossible to find a boat!"

"Remeber what I said back in Triet?"

"About... stealing a boat! I thought you were joking."

"Do I look like the kind of person who jokes." He glared. The professor went wide-eyed.

"That would set a bad example. We are the Chosen's group after all."

"If the townspeople won't give us a ship, it's thier own fault. Like you said, we are the Chosen's group. Quick travel is what we need. If they won't give it to us, we'll take it." Kratos folded his arms across his chest as Raine rubbed her temples in disbelief. The man looked back at her. "Are you afraid of water?" He asked. The teacher glared furiously.

"Of course not!" She half yelled.

Kratos put a hand to his chin. "Right." Raine's face grew red with agitation.

Aurora and Genis came down the stairs. Genis was questioning the swordswoman about why she skipped dinner last night.

"I just didn't feel well."

"Well, you're gonna eat today. You haven't had food for two days now."

"Okay. I'll eat, I promise. As long as you're the one cooking."

"Good. Morning Raine, Kratos. What do you guys want for breakfast?" The mage asked. Kratos shrugged.

"How about pancakes?" Raine asked. They were her favorite breakfast food. It would help calm her down before going out to sea.

"Okay, I'll get right on it." He grabbed the heaviest of the bags the group lugged around and carried it outside. Aurora went to go sit in a chair. A finger twirled a lock of clean hair. Her feet swung lightly, just a few inches above the ground. She couldn't wait to ride a boat. She'd been stuck in that dry desert forever waiting for the Chosen. It had been a long time since she'd been to a large body of water. To exited to sit still for long, she walked down to the beach. She overheard an interesting conversation.

"Oh, Afried. Won't you stay just a little while longer?"

"Sorry Lyla, but a pirate can't stay on dry land for long or he'll lose his sea legs. Then what kind of pirate would I be?"

"Oh please! Just one more day."

"Fine. One more day."

Aurora chuckled at the infatuated girl. She was like that once. It just ended up in the most scarring five months of her life. Sighing, she dipped her feet into the cold ocean water. A shallow water fish came up and nibbled on her toes, making her giggle. A far cry of, "Breakfast is ready!" ended her visit to the shimmering water.

"Wow Genis. This looks amazing! Give me five please." Lloyd bounced up and down in his spot. Genis glared.

"You'll get three Lloyd."

"Aw..." He held his plate out and let Genis serve him his quota of three pancakes.

"How many do the rest of you want?" Genis asked.

"Two." Answered Collette, Raine, and Kratos simultaneously.

"One." Was Aurora's simple answer. Everyone stared at her.

"..."

"What?"

"You haven't eaten in two days. Don't you think you should eat more?" Collette asked. The brunette shook her head.

"No. My stomach is too small to hold much. Such is the life of a blind person. More than one pancake would surely make me regurgitate."

They all cringed at her answer.

"Okay. One it is." Genis handed her a plate. Aurora nodded in thanks and began to eat her meal.

"If she doesn't want the rest... can I have them? Ow!" Raine smacked Lloyd.

* * *

After finishing, they cleaned up and headed towards the docks. A man greeted them.

"Hello travelers. The ships aren't running if that's what you're looking for. Too many monsters scurrying about these days." Kratos nodded and walked on anyways. Raine started to feel nauseous. They were really going to steal a ship for themselves if no one else could take them. The first dock the went to had an old, worn down fishing boat, with an equally old man beside it.

"Hello. How may I help you?" He asked. Kratos stepped forward.

"Can you take us across the ocean to Palmacoasta?"

"Sorry youngin." Heh. Youngin. This man hadn't lived even a fourth of Kratos's existence. "Too many monsters out. My poor ship here wouldn't last a mile." The mercenary nodded and moved onto the next dock, the rest following behind. After four more docks, they hadn't found anyone willing to take them across the ocean. Raine had given up all hope of getting through this ordeal shameless. The last dock held a large ship tied to the tiny boardwalk with multiple ropes. A red headed young man stood beside it with a girl slighty smaller than hisself.

"Excuse me," Kratos interrupted. "Could you take us to Palmacoasta?" He asked the couple. The man shrugged.

"Sure, if you can pay me."

"How much?" Raine asked darkly.

"Ten-thousand gald."

Everyone sweat-dropped.

"We don't have that kind of money!" Lloyd blurted out.

"I'm a pirate. You won't get anything free." He announced.

"And anyways," The girl pulled him closer. "You said you'd sat another day. Right." She glared. The man sighed.

"Right."

Kratos nodded and led the group away from the ships.

* * *

Raine sighed, leaning against a bulletien board. She put her face in her hands and then ran her fingers through her sliver hair. This was probably the worst day of her life.

"What are we going to do now?" Collette askked worriedly.

"We could-" Raine started, but stopped when Kratos glared at her. He cleared his throat before answering the Chosen.

"We will have to steal one."

"What?" The oblivious part of the group asked.

"B-But that's-" Genis started

"Stealing!" Lloyd shouted.

"Yes." Kratos said as if it were a normal thing to steal.

"Even if we did, which one would we steal? They're all innocent people!" Collette cried. Kratos shook his head.

"We could steal the pirate's ship. Pirates are the scourge of the sea are they not. I doubt he is innocent. Stealing his ship would be of no penalty. We have to continue the journey anyway, so do you really have a choice?"

"Like I said, we could always go across land." Raine shouted. The mercenary glared.

"Do you have a death wish? We aren't strong enough to fight those creatures yet."

Raine pouted, but argued no further. The man nodded in approval.

"Then it's settled. Meet here at sundown. Do anything else you wish to in the meantime." He finished before walking over to a vendor. Genis smiled evily and walked over to the Katz he'd seen earlier. Lloyd and Collette paired up, then left to go to the beach. That left Raine and Aurora. Feeling the aura of anger and unease rolling off of Raine, the swordswoman turned to her.

"Are you nervous Raine?" She asked. The teacher glared.

"I'm fine. It's just that stealing goes aganist my morals. Not that you would know."

Aurora sighed. "No matter what you think, I'm not a bad person Raine. I think you need to get over being prejudiced."

Raine glared. What did she know about prejudice. She was the half-elf in this equation not her.

"I'm going to prepare. You can go play with the children like you always do." She huffed.

"At least the children are more compassionate." The blue clad girl said darkly before turning and walking off. The healer grew red in the face. Ugh. Why did they let her on this journey anyways? She walked over to Kratos.

"Is it too late to leave the cripple behind?" Raine asked the mercenary. He rolled his eyes at the persistent teacher.

"Do you have to refer to her as 'the cripple'?"

"Well, she is."

"Why do you hate her so?"

"She isn't a good influence on the children."

"How?"

"S-She, just makes them like her."

"I don't think she is forcing them to do anything Raine. In fact, the children just seem to gravitate towards her. I guess she is just a children's person."

"But they are 'gravitating' towards a cripple."

"And?"

"They'll begin to be more lenient, and before you know it, we'll have half of Sylvarant following us."

"We don't have to give the children thier way."

"Then why is she still around?"

Kratos sighed. "Please Raine. If all you came here to do is complain, please leave." He finished paying for the supplies and turned to her. She glared before storming off. He put a hand to his face. Such an irrelevant spat.

* * *

The sun dipped over the horizon and left the small fishing village in darkness. The group congregated at the center of town and got a plan together.

"I'll be able to cut the ropes free quickly and quietly." Aurora offered her traits for use.

"I'll keep watch with Genis." Lloyd said.

Raine sighed. "I guess I'll inspect the ship."

"I'll join you." Kratos annouced.

"What can I do?" Collette asked eagerly.

"Wait quietly on the ship." Raine replied.

"Okay." The blonde frowned in disappointment.

Kratos, Raine, Lloyd, Genis, and Collette all headed for the ship. Aurora smirked and pulled out her sword.

"Time to steal a ship." Smiling, her body was one with the shadows as she made quick work of the ropes anchoring the ship. After doing her job, she galloped gracefully behind Lloyd and Genis's bored figures. "Boo!"

Both the boys scrambled to get thier weapons out while Aurora laughed at her practical joke. They both glared at the woman.

"Aurora." Lloyd sighed. "Don't do that, we might have hurt you."

"Hurt me?" Aurora snorted playfully. "You can't beat me."

"Really?" Lloyd asked skeptically.

"You can bet on it." The girl's chin lifted up into a defiant pose. Lloyd readied his swords. She smirked. "Give it all you got buddy boy."

Lloyd charged into battle, flailing swords at the cripple who easily manuvered around the swipes. She stopped moving and frowned at Lloyd.

"Stop holding back."

"I'm not." Lloyd gasped for air. Genis was rolling on the floor, holding his sides.

"Outdone by a girl. Way to go Lloyd."

"Shut up Genis." The red clad teen blushed in embarassment. "Uh, would this be one of those 'occasions' where you could teach me?"

Aurora sighed. "I guess. Okay, first things first, don't just wave your swords around. Use some strategy. Two, when I fight back, try your best to dodge." She lunged forward the unsuspecting swordsman, easily disarming him and pinning him to the railing of the ship. "And three, never let your guard down." She eased off the sword and backed away. "End of training with Aurora."

Lloyd rubbed his head. "How did you do that?"

"Years of practice."

"I practiced too!"

"With who?"

"Um... myself."

"That might be the problem. Don't worry, I'm sure Kratos will mold you into a fine young swordsman by the end of this journey."

"Ugh. Kratos? But I don't want him to train me."

Aurora cocked her head. "Why Lloyd? What's wrong with him?"

"He's just, too strict, and, well, a showoff."

"Well, he has used a sword longer so it may seem like he showing off. Given a little time, you'll be able to do things he does too."

Kratos walked up to the top deck. "What was all that noise? We're trying to steal a ship _without_ getting caught, remember?"

"Sorry." Aurora apologized. "I wanted to spar with Lloyd, that's all."

"Then try to restrain yourself next time." He said.

Lloyd frowned. "No. She's lying. I wanted her to train me for a little while and bugged her into it. Sorry."

Everyone on deck stared at the teen. Kratos nodded. "That's very responible of you Lloyd."

Lloyd smiled. "Thanks."

Raine came up and announced that the ship was ready to go. Kratos steered the ship while the others stood around. Aurora sat against the mast, listening to the waves and letting the rythm lull her into a drowsy state. Lloyd, Genis, and Collette chattered about the next seal. Raine was leaning over the railing as if she would be sick at any moment. As they got farther out, the rougher the sea became. One particularly large wave rocked the ship very hard flinging the teacher over the edge.

"Raine!" Genis called. The group, minus Kratos, ran over to the spot where the woman had just been. "Raine! Are you okay?"

"Professor!" Lloyd called out.

"Ah!" They could hear a faint scream.

"Someone get her please! She can't swim!" Genis was panicking.

"Move." Aurora commanded. The children stared at her. "Move!" She repeated. They recoiled at her tone and moved out of the way. The girl ran and jumped off the ship. She could hear people shout both her and the Raine's names. Ignoring the calls, she made her way towards the faint, muffled screams of the teacher. Everyone watched in horror as the Professor's hand slipped under the surface, the icy cold water extinguishing her cries. Aurora took a deep breath and dove for her. When they surfaced, Raine started clawing around for anything solid.

"Raine." The woman's savoir tried to calm her down. The woman wasn't listening. "Raine!" Stopping for a brief moment, the healer looked at Aurora. "Stop that or we'll both drown." She ordered. Raine calmed down a little. "Thank-you. Now please tell me which way the boat is." Obeying orders, Raine's pale hand turned the crippled towards the ship. Lloyd was already lowering some rope. After a few minutes of swimming, they finally reached the boat. Raine collapsed on the floor, and Genis rushed over to her. Aurora shivered a little from the freezing sea water that drenched her from head to toe. She leaned over Raine.

"Are you okay?" She asked, honest concern for the teacher was in her voice. Raine nodded.

"W-Why did you s-save me?" She asked. Aurora's brows furrowed.

"Why wouldn't I? No one deserves to die. If the roles were reversed, would you have come after me?"

"..." Raine was silent.

The swordswoman frowned. "I see..." She muttered and stalked off to the ship's interior. Lloyd, Collette, and Genis surrounded the confused woman on the ground and tried to comfort her, but all she could do was stare at the door her savior had exited through.

* * *

Me: (Covered in blood) I really like this chapter.

Lloyd: (Covered in brusies) I don't.

Me: XP

Genis: (Sigh) Review please.

Me: Yes pppppllllllleeeeeeeeeeaaaaasssssssseeeeeeeeeeee!!!!!!!!!! Even if its for constructive criticism! I'll take it. I'm begging you. T.T

Lloyd: You're pathetic.

Me: Whose the one covered in cuts here.

Lloyd: Oh yeah.


	9. Chapter 8

Me: WHEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! :D

Genis: Why are you so happy?

Me: I gots TWO reviewers now. AnimeAngel809 and silk345. You both get a cake! Plus, my stories been added to AkatsukisNumber1Fangirl alert list. You can hav a cake too! I's so hppy right now!

Genis: Is that what's making you talk like a kindergartener?

Me: XP Shut up! silk345 said this was the only decent Kratos story they've read. That made my day! That, and I'm on thier fav authors list. Have a cookie with that cake.

Genis: So you've got three people who actually did something with the story. Big whoop.

Me: It's a big whoop to me! A VERY big whoop! Pain Neverending has had 100 visitors! Thanks for the support guys! (Squeals with joy)

Genis: Whatever. Just get to the fic. The people didn't come here to see you go crazy.

Me: They didn't come to see you be a pessimist either. :P

Genis: Just start the fic so I can leave already.

Me: Fine sheesh. Oh well, nothing could dampen my mood! I don't own Tales of Symphonia or Grandia II if any of you get the reference. Brownie points if you do! (Which I doubt you will. It's an old game. OLD! Dreamcast old... Yes, I play the Dreamcast. Haha.)

A/N I'm changing things around some. Some meaning the imposters look different. XP Let's get on with it!

* * *

Chapter 8: Hard Memories with a Side of Stupidity. And Don't Skimp on the Education!

The group only found one bedroom in the whole ship. Raine was given it seeing as she needed it the most. Aurora, Genis, Lloyd, and Collette found a large empty room and had spread out thier sleeping bags in a circle. Genis was the first to awaken. Yawning and rubbing his icy blue eyes, he reached over and tapped Lloyd on the head.

"Wake up. I'll be bored without anyone to talk to." He complained. Lloyd snorted in his sleep and rolled away from the mage. A mumble of 'shut up Genis' could be heard through the snoring. Genis rolled his eyes and grabbed a book on magic he kept in his bag. Aurora had saved Raine earlier that night... morning... whatever, and needed her rest, and Collette never talked to Genis much. Lloyd was the only thing that connected them really.

_When casting a spell, one should always focus. Any disruption during the chant or miswording can cause it to either backfire, or shoot in the wrong direction. Also, you should..._

Genis was bored with it already. After reading it five times, it got pretty bland. Tossing it across the room, he snatched up his bag and began to look through its contents. Three apple gels, an orange gel, two panacea bottles, a life bottle, two-hundred gald, a brush, and mint leaves. Wait a minute... this wasn't his bag. Whose was it then? He looked over his shoulder at the other person sleeping beside him. Aurora was curled up on her side in a ball, snoring softly. Oh right, that brush was the one he slipped in her bag before leaving Triet. So this was Aurora's eh. She didn't have very many things in her's. His own bag carried five apple gels, four orange gels, a panacea bottle, ten magic lenses, two life bottles, a few books, his old kendamas, a canteen of water, and five-hundred gald. The mage shook his head. He found his bag and threw an orange gel into the swordswoman's.

"There. Raine can be so stubborn sometimes. My share of our gald is even more than your own personal amount." He whispered, putting the bag back where he found it. The boat jerked to a stop causing all of its sleeping passengers to awaken. They all groaned at the rude awakening.

"We're at Palmacoast already?!" Lloyd slammed his fist down in aggrivation. Collette was as bright and cheery as always. After drinking a bit of water and brushing her hair, she was good to go. Aurora sat up and dug around in her pack for a leaf, like usual. Then, she pulled out the brush.

"Did any of you know who put this here?" She asked.

"No. Sorry." Collette frowned in confusion.

"It wasn't me." Lloyd answered.

Genis decided to play along. "Don't know." He said. Aurora shrugged and continued to brush through her nappy head. Footsteps could be heard coming down the stair. The rythm of the stride was slow and had a mysterious sound about it. They finally came to a stop at thier door, and in came...

A GROUP OF CANNABALISTIC MONKEYS!

...

Just kidding. Kratos stood in the doorframe.

"We've docked. Come up as soon as you're ready." And with that, the non-cannabalistic non-ape mercenary went back up the stairs. The group sighed and gathered their things. Up on deck, Kratos and Raine stood waiting patiently.

"Did you gather all your belongings?" Raine asked. "We won't be coming back after we get off."

Everyone nodded.

"Good."

Palmacoasta was a large city. Vendor shacks made up half the docking area and there were significantly more ships here than in Izoold. The chidren and Raine stared in awe. Kratos didn't because, well, he'd probably been here when the city was founded and many times after. Aurora ddn't satre because, well, she can't.

"It's so big." Genis whispered.

"Yeah. Really big." Collette steped in front of him.

"And you know what?" The half-elf whispered back.

"What?"

"I give Lloyd ten minutes to get bored with it."

Aurora laughed along with Collette while Lloyd went red. Then, he noticed a large academic looking facility poking out above the rest of the buildings.

"Hey Genis." He started.

"Yeah Lloyd?"

The swordsman pointed a finger to the building. "Didn't you get a scholarship to go there?"

"Oh yeah. That's right. Oh, Raine. Can we go visit please?" He begged to his sister. Raine sighed.

"I don't know. If we have time I guess."

"Yes." Genis smiled and continued further into the city.

Collette was always in the front of the group, stopping them periodically to look at strange new sights. Her eyes opened wide at a puppy, of course. She ran blindly towards it and ended up running into a red-haired woman. A glass object fell form the lady's hand and shattered when it hit the cobblestone road.

"Ack!" She scramed. "What where you going wouldja! Look what you did, you made me drop the Palma Potion. Argh! When I'm done with you-"

"I'm sorry." Collette meeped out. Raine stood inbetween them now.

"I'm sorry our companion has harmed your Potion, but we will replace it." Ranie said, trying to reason it out.

"Replace it! You'll have to do more than that." The red-head glared as three others walked up behind her. One came up right beside her. He had spiky brown hair, a blue suit, and an eagle that was perched upon his shoulder. The next were a little boy with shiny blonde hair and bright blue eyes. The other was a large man who looked rather lionlike with his gray mane. A long axe hung from his back.

"We broke it and we'll replace it. What more do you want?" Raine asked accusingly. The brown headed guy spoke up.

"What happened here Millenia?" He asked.

Aurora gasped. That couldn't be. No. She tried to hide behind the person in front of her, which happened to be Kratos. It was too late though, the odd man had already noticed her. The mercenary looked at her strangley before turning back to the situation at hand. He didn't know why, but his feet slid into a defensive stance.

"These people Ryudo," The other girl pointed to the group with a slender, pale, finger. "broke our Palma Potion, and think that replacing it will be enough to fix the damage."

"Well then. I guess I'll just have to think up of a good payment then. How about... you replace the Palma Potion, and let that lady right there come with me." He smirked evily as he motioned towards Aurora. Even without her eyes, you could see the expression of fear on her face. No. She wouldn't go. It had taken so long to get away from _him,_ and those nightmares that her time with _him_ created. They'd haunted her dreams for the past two years.

Raine looked at the guy as if he grew three heads."We will buy the Palma Potion and that's it. You'll get nothing more or nothing less." Raine declared. The man snorted.

"Fine. Split up guys. Guard the exits." He ordered taking the red-head by the arm and walking off.

Everyone looked at Aurora.

"Do you know that guy?" Lloyd asked.

"I wish I didn't." She answered.

"What happened?" Genis asked. Aurora shook her head.

"I don't want to talk about it." She mumbled and let her head stay down for the rest of the day. Her companions gave her strange looks before continuing.

* * *

Finally, they found a store. When they walked in, they found two Desians fighting with a woman.

"Hah! You must be on crack if your asking for this at a price THAT low." The girl scoffed and turned her head in an arrogant way. The brown pony tail in her hair swung around her shoulders.

"Your lucky that we even pay for them, wench!" One of them yelled.

"Chocolat, please." An older version of the girl pleaded from a corner. The young one paid no attention to her.

"You're Desians! I don't have to take this crap from you. Governer-General Dorr will destroy your kind." She screamed back. The Desian held up his fist.

"Why I outta-"

"Stop." His partner grabbed his shoulder. "We've reached our quota. We'll have to speak to Magnius about it." The half-elf reclaimed his shoulder.

"Fine. Depending on Lord Magnius's mood, you may or may not get to keep that pretty little head of yours." He threatened before storming out. Chocolat crossed her arms n a victory pose.

"I'm off to work now mom." She annoced before scurrying out the door. The older woman shook her head before greeting the group.

"I'm so sorry for that display. My name is Cocoa. Is there something you need?" She asked.

"Who's Govener-General-Dorr?" Lloyd asked. Cocoa smiled slightly.

"Dorr is the ruler of Palacoasta. He keeps the Desians at bay with the city's militia. A great man he is."

"Oh." Was Lloyd's genius response.

Kratos stepped forward."Do you have a Palma Potion?" He asked.

"Yes-sir. That'll be one-thousand gald please."

"T-That's a lot of money." Lloyd stuttered.

Cocoa frowned. "I'm sorry. If you need to earn money, the academy's cafeteria needs a waitress." She suggested. Kratos nodded and led the group outside.

"Yes! To the academy.

* * *

The academy's lobby was large enough to fit one Iselia house. They all gasped.

"Wow Genis. You got a scholarship to come here?" Lloyd asked in disbelief. A boy coming down the stairs stopped and scoffed at this remark.

"There's no way this shrimp could've been invited to study here. He's just a kid."

"Hey." Lloyd glared at the snobby boy. "Genis is really smart. He can do his times tables!"

Everyone sweatdropped. Genis sighed.

"Lloyd, what kind of low grade example is that?"

Raine rolled her eyes. "It's a high grade one for Lloyd." The red clad teen turned the shade of his shirt. The snob huffed.

"If your telling the truth, prove it. Come upstairs and take the entrance exam. My name's Mighty by the way." He turned and went back up the stairs.

"Okay then." Raine sighed. "You'll probably need to study first Genis. Lloyd, this would be a wonderful experience for you too."

Lloyd paled. H-Hey look Collette! There's the cafe. Let's go." He grabbed the oblivious blond by the wrist and yanked her towards the resturaunt. The teacher sighed and led the remaining part of the group up upstairs into an empty classroom. After studying for a few boring hours, they went to face the boy.

"You sure you want to be humiliated like this?" He sneered. Genis smiled confidently.

"I'll be fine. You'll be the one whose humiliated."

"We'll see." He said as the dean entered the room with an assistant.

"Alright." The dean started. "I've made this tests so it will be fair. Take your seats."

Everyone took thier seats. Raine sat next to Genis, Aurora sat next to Kratos, and Mighty by himself. The dean passed the papers out toeveryone but Aurora. She frowned and slunk down in her seat. Genis turned to her.

"You okay?" He asked. She shook her head.

"It' fine. I just can't read, that's all." Yeah. That's all. The mage frowned.

"Do you want me to read it to you?"

"No. I'm fine."

The dean overheard the conversation and interjected. "If you want to miss, I can give you an oral test in a different classroom if you like." Aurora smiled.

"I would love that." She said. He nodded and turned to his assistant.

"Please watch these people while I administer her test please." The assistant nodded quietly and took up a post in the front of a desk. Aurora stood up and followed the old man out of the room.

(Cue Jepoardy Music)

Finally, after two hours of being hunched over a desk, the intelligent part of the group finished thier exams.

"All right. I'll announce the scores from the lowest to the highest." The dean cleared his throat.

"Kratos Aurion: 380."

"Aurora Sakkara: 385"

"Raine Sage: 400 Not that we'd expect anything less from the Professor herself. Now for Genis and Mighty's scores."

"Mighty: 398"

The snobby boy threw a smart-aellic glare to Genis.

"Genis Sage: 400"

The mage's eyes widened. "I did it!" He chanted. Raine hugged his brother and Aurora patted him on the back. Lloyd and Collette came in to show off their newly aquired Palma Potion. All was good and dandy with our heroes. Mighty came up to Genis.

"Sorry for doubting you. You should stay here and study though. Your name will probably become the most renowned worldwide."

Lloyd punched his friend's shoulder. "That's great Genis. You should stay."

The half-elf smiled slyly. "I'm not going anywhere Lloyd."

"What?" Everyone asked in disbelief. Genis nodded.

"I said I'd be with you to the end and I meant it. Once this journey is over, I will come back to study, but until then, I'm by your side all the way."

Lloyd beamed at his friend.

"Well, guess it's time to give that Palma Potion back to those people." Aurora sighed.

"Oh, right." Raine didn't sound any more pleased than Aurora did.

The group met up with the other one at the gate. Raine shoved the Palma Potion into the red-head's hands. "Here." She said acidicaly.

"'Bout time. Let's go guys. We gotta go sell that book to the old geezer on Hakonesia Peak." She huffed and led her companions through the exit.

"Yeah. I can't believe Dorr gave us his family hierloom just like that." The boy smirked.

"Yes. He was dim-witted." The lion-man said in a husky voice."

Ryudo looked back over his shoulder."I'll get you back. Don't worry." He smirked and trailed his group, and Aurora glared in his direction.

A blue haired man ran up to them before anything else could be said.

"A-Are you th-the Chosens's group. G-Govener-General-Dorr has s-something for you. M-My names Niel b-by the way." He gasped for air, then pointed to a building. "He'll m-meet you there." He finished before running off.

"Okay..." Genis said.

"Well then, we should head for the government building." Kratos took the lead.

A blonde haired man in a green outfit stood behind an official looking desk. A small girl in a purple dress stood beside him. "Hello. My name is Govenor-General-Dorr." He greeted them warmly. "You must be the Chosen's group."

"Oh yes. That's me." Collette grinned.

"What did you need to give us?" Raine asked.

"I had a family hierloom I needed to give to you. It was a record of Spiritua's journey." His eyes narrowed into a glare. "Too bad I already gave it to the real Chosen. Guards!" Plate armored men came from behind the group and surrounded the heroes. "You are aressested for defiling the name of the Chosen and calling yourself her." Collette gasped.

"No wait I-" She tripped... over nothing... while standing still, causing her wings to sprout from her back. All the soldiers gasped.

The little girl shouted."Daddy look! She's an angel!"

Dorr gasped. "You're right Kilia." Collette got up and fluttered her pink and purple wings. Raine looked annoyed.

"So you mean to tell us that you gave the book to IMPOSTERS!" She shouted. Dorr flinched at her outburst.

"Anyone can CLAIM to be the Chosen." Aurora sighed.

"I'm truly sorry." The General squeaked.

Genis rolled his eyes. "Ugh. You idiot. You just gave some random person the book! Stupid human OW!" Raine slapped his little brother.

Dorr hung his head in shame. "I'm really sorry. You may leave now."

* * *

"Well, what now?" Lloyd asked. They'd rented rooms at the inn and were now sitting in the lobby.

Aurora tapped her chin. "I heard something those people we ran into earlier talking about a book. They were going to sell it at Hakonesia Peak to an old man."

"That's a start." Genis shrugged. "So... Hakonesia Peak eh? Guess we've found our next destination."

"Mm-hm." Raine yawned. "It's time for bed. Let's all get some sleep. It's been an exciting day for all of us." She got up and stalked off to her room. Everyone left siad their goodnights and headed off to thier respectable rooms. Kratos caught Aurora before she got to her's though.

"Are you going to explain about that man we met today." He inquired. Aurora frowned.

"It's none of your business."

"Yes it is. He wants you for some reason and he's bound to follow us. We have a right to know."

"We?"

"Yes, the rest of the group was wondering too."

"I-It's personal." She tried to go around him, but he grabbed her arm.

"Tell me."

She glared. "No."

The mercenary threw back an equally terrifying glare. "Do you want to stay on this journey?"

The girl's eye twitched. "Fine. Three years ago, I met Ryudo. He was the son of a wealthy couple in Asguard. I thought I was in love, but it turned out he was just ussing me for his own personal gain. It took me eight months to get free. Now if you'll excuse me," She yanked her arm away. "I'm tired. Goodnight." She slammed the door behind her. Kratos glared at the door.

"Goodnight." He frowned and walked to his room.

* * *

Me: That's it. Thakns for reading. It's now time for me to go to sleep. Please review. You get a cookie! Even if it's one word and says 'Horrible.' please send it. I would really like it if you reviewed again too silk345, my canadian friend. ^.^

Genis: I really don't have anything to say. This chapter sucked.

Me: I know -.-' It's late. I'm tired and out of ideas. Goodnight. Zzzzzzzz...

Genis: Please review.


	10. Chapter 9

Me: -.-'

Lloyd: What's with you.

Me: This is so very ironic and weird...

Lloyd: Huh?

Me: Remeber AnimeAngel809 said they got Assassin's Creed in their review?

Lloyd: Mm-hm.

Me: Remember they said it would control thier life for the next week?"

Lloyd: Right.

Me: ... My dad just got it for me. AND I LOVE IT! The graphics on that game are the best I've seen. Whee!

Lloyd: That's... really creepy.

Me: I know it is. Oh well, I've been wanting it so badly. A little coincidence is nothing to worry about. I just now saved it and cut it off, even though I was engrossed in it. I still remember my duty to the fans! Thanks for the 'Horrible' review silk345. XD Cake time for you! Don't worry. Ryudo isn't a main character. He may pop up from time to time, but only according to how I feel. He's a bigger part of Aurora's background than her present. So, you like Genis huh? Hehe, he was one of my favorites. Now for the bad news. For some reason I can't check my traffic! (Sob!) Alright. I don't own Tales of Symphonia or Grandia II. (If you hadn't figured it out yet, the imposter group is named after the characters. I swear ToS has to be a rip off. Go play the game! (If you can even find it somewhere) You'll know what I'm talking about.) Fic on!

* * *

Chapter 9: You Did What Now?

The whole group had finally awoken and were all down stairs waiting for, guess who, Lloyd. After getting bored, Collette begged for Raine to go into the city with her. Kratos found sitting there a waste of time, and left to buy supplies. The only two left were the mage and the swordswoman. Genis's foot twitched impatiently, tapping the floor rapidly. Aurora sighed.

"Why are you so antsy today?" She asked. "Drink to much coffee?"

"No-yes-maybe-why do you wanna know?!" He snapped, his hands shaking now. Aurora raised an eyebrow at the boy.

"How many cups?"

"... T-Twelve."

You could see Aurora's eyebrows move as if she were rolling her eyes. "Why so many? Did you stay up last night?" Genis shifted his eyes from side to side.

"No..."

The girl glared.

"Maybe..."

Her mouth twisted into an unapproving frown.

"Fine. I did."

"What were you doing?"

"Um- nothing?..."

She huffed at the mage.

"Fine. I was up all night out in town."

"And what might you have been doing?"

"I-I had to try..."

"Try?"

"I was forced to taste..."

"Taste?"

"I-I-I drank some potion, okay!"

Aurora gasped. "Genis! What on earth made you do that? You're underage!"

"Shshshshshshhhh!" He hushed her by covering her mouth. "Don't tell Raine!" Finally, something clicked in Aurora's head. She tried to say something, but the mage's hands were planted firmly to her mouth. She glared and the boy realeased her lips. She rubbed them before continuing.

"So that's why something smelled when I walked by your room. Did you have a hangover?"

"No, but Lloyd did." He muttered. The woman gasped.

"BOTH of you drank? What possesed you boys to _do_ that?!"

"Well, it started off as a dare. Lloyd told me that if I drank one bottle of Palma Potion, he'd give me twenty gald. So we snuck out and went to that bar in town. I took one sip and that was it. The stuff tasted like vomit. Lloyd thought I was being a pansy and drank one bottle himself. Then another... and another..."

Aurora fell back in her seat with the back of her hand on her forehead. "He's addicted to potion? Did he get drunk?"

"I think so. If jumping up on the table and doing bad stand up comedy, then following it up with the chicken dance, isn't normal for Lloyd, yeah. I'd say he got pretty drunk."

The girl laughed. "That's a hereditary gene, potion addiction. Who'd he get it from?" She asked. Genis frowned.

"I don't know. Lloyd never knew his real parents."

Aurora half-smiled. "It seems he and I have something in common."

"Hope it's not the drinking problem."

Aurora chuckled. "Well, at least you've got the right idea."

Genis cringed at the memory of the Palma Potion. "That proves it."

"Proves what?"

"Adults are idiots. Getting addicted to that stuff is just downright insane."

"... How did you pay for the potion?"

"Um... group funds... hehe..."

Aurora facepalmed.

Just then, our resident drunk walked down the stairs. He walked like a newborn deer and his breathing was labored. Sweat stains covered his underarms.

"'Sup guys. Bwaugh. I think I'm a little sick." He half-walked half-tripped down the stairs, then dry-heaved once at the bottom. Aurora stood up and walked over to him. She reached out until she made contact with his shoulder, and climbed her hand up to the side of his face. Her fingers pinched his ear. Lloyd was too dead to even grab his aching lobe.

"That's what you get for diobeying the drinking law."

Lloyd's eyes widened. "H-How, (burp) did you know." Aurora recoiled from him.

"Your breath is the worst thing I've inhaled in my entire life. Go brush your teeth Lloyd. And use mouthwash. Heck, eat some soap for good measure! I'll deal with you afterwards."

The teen hung his head in shame and slunk back to his room muttering curses to himself. The woman sighed, shook her head, and chuckled. Kids and their idiotic bets. She had a feeling this wouldn't be the last time the guys faced an impulse based desicion and its consequences. Boys will be boys, she figured. The rest of the gang came back after an hour and were ready to go. Raine looked concernededly at her brother.

"Genis, are you okay?"

"T-Too much c-coffee." Was all he said.

* * *

Kratos did an inventory check at the gate with all the supplies.

Kratos- 7 apple gels, 4 orange gels, 2 life bottles, 5 magic lenses, group share 1,500 gald, personal 5,200 gald.

Raine- 5 apple gels, 8 orange gels, 4 life bottles, 3 magic lenses, group share 1,500 gald, personal 3,500 gald.

Aurora- 3 apple gels, 2 orange gels, two panacea bottles, a life bottle, personal 200 gald. (Aurora is under Raine's rule remember. No group shares for her.)

Collette- 8 apple gels, 4 orange gels, 2 panacea bottles, 3 life bottles, group share 500 gald. (Kids don't get personal amounts of gald.)

Genis- 5 apple gels, 3 orange gels, 1 panacea bottle, 10 magic lenses, 2 life bottles, group share 0 gald.

Lloyd- 6 apple gels, 2 orange gels, 4 panacea bottles, 2 life bottles, group share... a sheet that said "-300 gald".

"..."

"..."

"(smirk)"

Kratos and Raine glared at the two boys. Aurora was holding in her hysterics to the point of tears.

"Boys," Raine started. The swordswoman was making odd hiccuping sounds trying to contain her laughter. She couldn't help it. Her immature side had taken over. "What did you do with the group shares and why does Lloyd have a sheet in his bag that reads '-300 gald'?"

She couldn't help herself. The blue clad girl laughed causing everyone to stare. She waved her hand at them as if it were nothing. Raine glared at her, but continued to interrogate the boys.

"What did you two spend 1,300 gald on?!" She yelled. The children seemed to shrink in their spots.

"Uh-uh,... KRATOS!" Lloyd yelled and pointed to the mercenary, causing Raine to turn away. Lloyd grabbed Genis's arm and rocketed down the trail. "Beat you to Haknoisea Peak!" He called out behind him. You could see a vien pop in Raine's forehead. Her face flushed in anger. Her feet stomped down the trail after them. Collette, oblivious and carefree as ever, skipped down the path. Kratos turned to a laughing Aurora.

"I wouldn't suppose you know what happened?"

She finished laughing and gasped for breath. "Oh I know, interesting story too. You see-" She darted after the others leaving Kratos in the dust. The mercenary rubbed his temples before following his client and her rag tag group.

* * *

"Argh!" Lloyd slowed down. "How much longer. This is tiring."

"Shut up and keep running! Raine is catching up!" Genis tried to pull his friend onward.

The teen walked forward meekly. "Don't... know... if I can... make it. Save... your...self."

Genis rolled his icy blue eyes. "Stop being so melodramatic Lloyd! Do you _want_ to be killed?" He struggled with the swordsman's wieght. Finally, he gave up after seeing Raine approach. "Later! Have fun with Raine!" The mage deserted his friend. The teacher caught up with the boy and yanked him up by the ear. This time he reacted.

"Ah!"

"What did you blow your money on?" She glared.

"M-M whatana whu- huh?" Lloyd stuttered so much his words were uncomprehensible.

"Please use proper english." She frowned. He was staring blankly behind her. "What?" She asked furiously. He pointed a shaky finger behind her as a dark shadow was cast over them both. The professor's eyes widened as she slowly turned her head. A wyvern was flying above her. His slit eyes gleamed viciously in the sunlight. Lloyd was dropped on his head by Raine.

"Ow!"

The dragon growled at the pair. His tail lashed out from behind him and caught Lloyd's boot.

"Ah! Help me!" The boy tried to grab his swords but they fell out of their sheaths and onto the ground. Panic taking over, he started to beat the tail with his fists. That's when Collette, Aurora, and Kratos arrived.

"Lloyd!" Collette cried. She pulled out her sparkling wings. "Angel Feathers!" She chanted. Arrow sharp quills from her wings shot out of her back and cut the mighty green beast. It looked towards the girl and dropped Lloyd on his head for the second time today. Aurora pulled out her own weapon and joined the battle. She ran, crouched, then jumped onto the beast's neck. It roared and started to shake the swordswoman off. Kratos ripped his own sword out and started to cut at its ankles. The girl still riding it grabbed onto one of its spine-spikes to get a better grip, then shoved the sword into the base of its neck. Blood spurted out and onto her face, getting the rustic taste of iron in her mouth. The dragon started to spasam out and flung her off. She flew through high in the air which gave her enough time to correct her posistion. With one last jerk, the Wyvern fell to the ground in a warm, bloody, heap. Lloyd had already recovered his swords but wasn't fast enough to join the battle. They all stood over the dead carcus.

"Wow, you did some damage Aurora." Lloyd commented. There was a large gash on the dead creature's neck that blood gushed out of. You could see the green luster in its scales fade away and the eyes go glassy. The woman shrugged.

"I wouldn't be thanking me just yet." She smiled evily. "You still have to tell them where the money went."

Raine spun to her. "They told you?!"

"Well, Genis did." She answered. Raine was both angry and disheartened. Her own brother chose to confide in a cripple instead of her. What did she do wrong?

"Tell me." The professor demanded.

Aurora chuckled. "I'll let them tell you themselves. Let's go to catch up with Genis before they do though. He was a part of it."

"I think he's waiting at that House of Salvation over there." Collette pointed to a silhouette in the distance. Raine nodded and led them on. Lloyd grumbled.

"Now you can thank me Lloyd." Aurora informed him.

"Thanks a lot." He mocked. She just chuckled.

* * *

"You did WHAT?" Raine shouted. The group had settled around the campfire Genis had cooked on. The mage and his red clad friend were trembling beside each other. "I can't believe you two! I thought you were raised better. Not only does what you did go against the morals you've been taught, it broke the law and now we have to pay three-hundred gald to that bar!" She ranted on, her face pure red with fury. Aurora tsked. Raine glared at her.

"Don't be so harsh on them Raine."

"What do you know about children?" The teacher snapped.

"Enough to know that if you react to them with anger, that's the only way they'll know how to respond." Aurora stated calmly.

"What? Do _you_ have a child? That man we met sure seemed to know you well enough, and Kratos told me what you said about him! You said it led to the worst eight months of your life! That must've been during your pregnancy! Was the baby premature?! Is it deformed?!" She asked. Aurora frowned.

"I never had a child for your information!"

"Then how do you know what to do!?"

"It's basic psychology!"

"Oh, that's it. Right. You probably had children with that Ryudo character!"

"Don't talk like that in front of them!" Aurora gestured towards the children. Raine didn't listen.

"Don't tell me what to do! They aren't your charges!"

"I was just trying to help!"

"Then go help your own child!"

"..." Aurora twitched with frustration. Couldn't this woman take a clue. "Y-You freaking woman! I can't have children!"

Raine flinched.

"Happy now?!"

"... Why didn't you just let me drown? It would make your life so much easier." Raine asked.

"Why do you insist that I'm a bad person? To be honest, I really don't care for you. You are a human life and the children like you, but that's all you are to me." Aurora had a few tears escape her cloth bandana. "Maybe I should just leave." The girl stood up and walked away. Everyone, even Kratos the man of stone, stared open mouthed. Genis was the first to react. He grabbed the escaping swordswoman's wrist.

"Don't go." He whispered. She yanked her arm back.

"Goodnight." She said simply before going into the HoS (House of Salvation).

* * *

Me: ... Y'know, I'll more than likely get flamed for that.

Lloyd: Why?

Me: I probably pushed Aurora and Raine's animosity too far for this early on in the fic. Oh well, it got somewhere. That's what I get for having a basic plot line and then making the rest up as I go along. Please review, then you can tell me how crappy my plot development is! You still get a cake. Goodnight. Zzzzzz...


	11. Chapter 10

Me: Hi guys! I can check my traffic again. Yaysees! I gots another reviewer! Thanks ShadowVDP! Plus, blackroseofdeath49 and Springflowerangel have added this tory to thier fav list, and 'i will make you rise with me' added it to thier alert list. Cake time! :D All readers get a cookie regardless if you review or not! I think that day off I took helped. More ideas.

Genis: And they will run out just as quickly.

Me: :P shut up!

Genis: Make me.

Me: XD Okay!

Genis: WAIT NO!

Me: (Stops charging up laser gun) Will you do the disclaimer?

Genis: Yes! DragonLady24 doesn't own ToS or Grandia II! Don't kill me please!

Me: I'll spare you for today victim... On with the fic!

* * *

Chapter 10: So Many Questions Plus a Bit of Background Information

* * *

The sky was dark and no stars could be seen through the rain clouds or trees.

"You're not going anywhere." A man cackled as thunder ripped through the night air.

"Please! Let me go!" A woman shrieked as she tried to pull out of the man's firm grasp. He threw her onto the cold, muddy ground, and stepped on her hand, causing her to flinch.

He bent over and whispered in her ear. "You can't leave me doll. You make far too much money for me to let you go free now." The sobbing woman trembled on the ground, getting her brown hair and skimpy red suit caked with mud. She tried to get up, but the man kicked her back down. "I guess I'll have to teach you the hard way. You can't escape." Lightining flashed and you could see the malicious man's silhouette against the dark background. He smiled sadistically and proceeded to beat the defenseless woman's back without mercy.

You could hear her screams echo throught the forest.

* * *

Aurora jerked up into a sitting posistion with tears streaming down her pale face and panted heavily. A bead of cold sweat trailed down her brow as she curled up into a ball and wrapped the covers around her, chanting some kind of mantra in her thoughts along the lines of _It's just a dream, that's over. It's just a dream, that's over._ Slowly, her body uncurled itself and left the soft warm bed. Trying to calm herslef down, she felt her way down the stairs, her other senses failing her. When she recovered,

"'alla will be saved."

Wait, that voice.

"Sheena?" The girl asked. Sheena spun around and threw a razor sharp card. The woman held her hand up to deflect it, ending up with a gash on her appendage.

"Aurora? Are you okay?" The shinobi asked. The cripple chuckled. A bloody card floated down to the floor. She grabbed her hand and squeezed the cut shut so it couldn't bleed.

"Where'd you go? I thought you left me."

"Your group accused me of brutaly mauling you to death." Sheena replied nonchalantly. "Nothing too bad."

"Well, at least your safe."

...

The swordswoman frowned. "We're supposed to be enemies, but I don't feel any hostile thoughts radiating from you."

"I don't want to be your enemy. I wish we could be friends, but I have a duty to my people."

Aurora perked up. "You... want to be... my friend?"

Sheena cocked her head. "I would."

The other girl smiled. "You're the first mature person to treat me like a living, breathing, feeling thing."

"Why-oh... I don't really care if you're blind. You're still a person."

Aurora frowned. "I really wish we were on the same side here."

"Yeah." The ninja sighed. "Well, sure can't fight you here, gotta go." And she dissapeared in a puff of smoke. The woman galred at the floor. _Why does fate have to treat me so cruelly?_ She thought.

"Good morning." Kratos walked down the stairs. Aurora nodded to him.

"... Is something bothering you?" He asked.

"No. And why would you ask in the first place?"

"You're a member on this journey." He stated.

"Never stopped you before."

"Hmph." He crossed his arms. "Would it have to do with that assassin?"

She gasped. "H-How did you-"

"I overheard."

The girl glared. "Is that how you were raised?"

"It is how I live. I'm a mercenary remember. It pays to be well rounded. That includes eavesdropping on converstions."

She crossed her arms. "Well please don't do it again."

"I can't promise that."

"Too bad. You're gonna."

"Hmph." He paused. "Is the arguing between you and Raine going to hinder this journey's progression?"

"I was planning on leaving, did you not hear me last night?"

The man glared. "If it was so hard to get into this group, why do you plan that?"

"I don't believe I can take much more."

"... That is weak."

"Don't be a hypocrite." She snapped. He glared.

"How is it that I am a hypocrite?"

"You were just about to make me leave yourself."

"How would you know?"

"'Is the fighting between you and Raine going to hinder this journey's progression?'" She quoted.

"I was merely asking."

"Right."

The mercenary frowned. He noticed blood seeping out of Aurora's hand. Reaching forward, he grabbed it gently, getting her warm crimson blood on his gloves. The woman jerked it away.

"Don't touch me." She spat.

"Why? You are hurt and I can heal you."

"I don't trust people like you."

"Hm? People like me?"

"Why do you ask so many questions?"

"Why do you not answer my question. Then I wouldn't need to again."

"...I don't trust..."

"Yes?"

"Nevermind."

He sighed in frustration. "At least let me heal your hand."

"I can do it myself."

"Oh really?"

"Heaven's Tear" She murmered. The cut sealed up instantly. "Happy now?"

"What type of magic did you use? I've never seen it before."

"Again with the questioning."

"You never seem to mind when the children ask you questions."

"..."

He raised an eyebrow.

"Fine. I'll answer one. Ever since I escaped Ryudo, I've never trusted... men."

"Escaped?"

"I said one answer and that's all you'll get."

The man glared but continued no further. No use in having two fueds going on. Raine walked down the stairs next along with Genis. They were talking about magic and how to improve their skills. Both stopped and stared strangely at Kratos's bloody glove, the bloody card, and Aurora's cut hand.

"Anything interesting happen?" Genis asked.

"Nope. Nothing really." Aurora hid her hand behind her back and Kratos did the same. The teacher raised an eyebrow skeptically. Shaking her head, Aurora started for the door. "Well then, I guess this is it. Bye."

"No!" Genis yelled and ran over to her.

"What?" Both Kratos and Raine asked.

"I'm leaving. Are you deaf?" She ignored the boy tugging on her sleeve.

"No you're not." Kratos stated.

"What?" Raine asked disappointedly.

"How are you going to stop me?" The swordswoman asked. Kratos didn't really know why he made her stay. He drew his sword.

"If you win, you may leave. If you lose, you must stay."

"Aw... isn't that sweet. You care if I leave or not. And here I thought I was just some useless cripple whose only purpose in life was to 'hinder the journey'." She glared. "Whatever. Make it quick."

"I will."

Thw two went outside and faced each other. Swords drawn, all they did for the first two minutes was size each other up. Finally, Aurora lept forward and slashed horizontally with her blade. Kratos caught it with his own weapon and the swords were locked in a match of strength. A few sparks flew before the fighters pushed off each other. The mercenary came forward this time and quickly hacked, while his opponent deftly parried and dodged them. This went on for five minutes, niether one able to defeat the other.

"Woah!" Lloyd and Collette came outside. "What's up with those two?" The teen swordsman asked.

"They're fighting to dedcide if Aurora will stay or go." Genis replied, not taking his observant eyes off the action. Collette pouted.

"Why must they try to kick her out? What has she done wrong?" The Chosen whined.

"Actually, Kratos is winning so she will stay. Aurora's the one who wanted to leave." Raine said as a matter-of-factly.

"She wanted to leave?" Lloyd asked.

"Yeah, and its all Raine's fault- OW!" Genis rubbed the sore spot on his head.

"Why do you hate Aurora, Professor?" Collette asked.

"Well, you're to young to understand." She huffed.

"I think we understand hate well enough." Lloyd said. Raine sighed.

"Just like half-elves, cripples are looked down upon."

"But she can't help it!" Collette cried.

"So? Neither can half-elves." Genis reminded her.

"Oh. Right." The blonde looked down at her feet.

Kratos finally saw an opening in Aurora's defenses and lunged for it. Of course, she had to make a wrong move and the sword went right into her side. The woman dropped her weapon and held her wound. The mercenary flipped his blade around and hit Aurora's stomach with the end of the handle. She staggered backwards and fell onto her backside.

"Quick enough?" He asked. Ignoring the no touch rule, he pressed his hand against her side and cast first aid. She glared at him and threw the hand off.

"Have you forgetten what I said?" She asked.

"No, I chose to ignore it." He responded.

"WHOO! SHE STAYS!" Lloyd and Genis yelled at the same time.

"Jinx, you owe me a potion!" The teen laughed but stopped when everyone stared.

"Ah, no I don't according to the rest of the group." Genis smirked. "But, it would be enjoyable to see you drunk again."

"What did he do?" Raine asked, knowing she prabably shouldn't have. Genis grinned evily.

"Well,"

"No Genis!" The red clad teen grabbed his buddy by the head and held his jaw together.

"Mmph-nmph-hmph!" Genis resorted to licking his hand when Lloyd wouldn't let go.

"Gross!" He screamed.

"It worked didn't it?" Genis asked in a smart-alliec tone. The teen glared.

* * *

Kratos was walking in the back of the group, lost in thought.

_She's still warm. When have I ever been able to feel a difference in temperature? Hm... well, when spells are cast to me, but, its not that much of a difference. And the thought that I know her from somewhere doesn't stop nagging at me. Who is Aurora really?_

"Does your head hurt from all that thinking?" Lloyd asked the man. He looked to his son. "What'cha thinking about?" He asked.

"Nothing."

"Well, it has to be something. Thinking about nothing is impossible." Lloyd rolled his eyes. Genis, overhearing the converstion, decided to comment.

"I'm sure if it is, you'd be the first to achieve it Lloyd."

"Shut it Genis. I wasn't talking to you." He snapped. The mage shrugged and left the swordsmen. "So tell me. What are you thinking about?"

"Nothing you need to be concerned about."

"Psh! You're no fun. I have a better chance of getting Aurora to talk when she's pissed off than to start up a conversation with you."

Kratos flinched, but no one noticed. "Then why don't you go talk to her?" He asked.

"I think I will." He strode off to the better conversationist. For a split second, Kratos thought about letting Lloyd's training fall into her her hands, but quickly chased the thought away. _Hm. The children seem to confide in her more than Raine and I. What is it about scarred people that seem to attract kids like that? Pity? Maybe. Low standards? That's also a possibility. Either way, her bond with Lloyd, Collette, and Genis might prove useful one day. _

Aurora was walking in the middle of the group when Lloyd came up beside her.

"Hi Aurora!" He beamed. She smiled.

"Can I do anything for you Lloyd?"

"Sure! Talk more than Kratos does in a week and we'll be in business."

She chuckled. "Alright, that doesn't sound too hard. Hm... Where do you live?"

"Iselia."

"That's a pretty name. What's it like?"

"Well, its kinda small. All of the houses are made of wood, and there's a lot of flowers. It hardly rains. The sky's pretty clear most of the time, but at night, you can see, like, a million stars from my balcony!"

"It's sounds like a nice place to live."

"Yeah, we even have a peace treaty with the Desians so they don't bother us."

"Genis said you didn't know your parents. Are you... an orphan?"

"Yes. I have an adoptive father though. His name's Dirk. He's a dwarf."

"Dwarf?"

"Yeah, a dwarf. Y'know, people that lived underground, are really short."

"Oh." To be honest, Aurora had been lost throughout this conversation. Stars, clouds, wood?

"What was your home like?" Lloyd asked.

"Well, it was in a cave."

Everyone had tuned in and all went silent. Aurora frowned. "What?" She asked.

"A... cave?" Genis asked.

"Well, more like a cavern."

"Wow!" Collette exclaimed.

"Keep going." Kratos demanded. This comment seemed to spark his memory. She frowned at him.

"How could you see? It must've been dark." Genis inquired.

"Oh no. We could see just fine. All the light came from the crystals embedded in the roof of the cavern. It bathed the city in a blue aura."

"What did it look like? What did you build houses with?" Lloyd pushed.

"The cavern was dome-shaped and had our homes carved into its sides. A perfectly round lake was placed in the middle and was about two miles in diameter. A large temple was intricately carved at the crest of one side. It was like a cave in itself and held an altar portaying a beautiful woman who was said to be made up entirely of water mana. That's the building I was dropped off at supposedly. Maria, my 'mother', found me on one of the benches meant for praying on and called me a blessing for some odd reason."

"..."

"..."

"..."

"..."

"..."

"Two-miles... That's incredible!" Genis shouted. The kids were in hysterics.

"You carved all your houses?" Lloyd asked.

"You've never seen the sky?" Collette questioned.

"Where is it?"

"Can we go?"

"Can you breathe there?"

"How did you eat?"

"What happened to it?"

"What was the lady's name?"

"QUIET!" Raine stopped the constant flow of questions. Aurora was silently thanking her. The swordswoman cleared her throat.

"Yes, it was two miles wide, yes, we carved all of our houses, no I've never seen the sky, I don't know where my home is located, so, no you can't go, yes, you can breathe, we ate fish, it was destroyed by a group of invaders, we never knew the lady's name, all we found were old scriptures that said something about a woman being transformed into the spirit of water and pictures of her." She drew a long breath. "Any more questions?"

"Uh, yeah. How do you not know where it is?" Genis asked.

"No one ever left the city, because there was no exit."

"No exit?" Lloyd raised an eyebrow.

"Yes, no exit. When the city was razed, I was knocked unconcious by one of the leaders and woke up on the outskirts of Hima I think."

"If there was no exit, how did the invaders get in?" Collette asked.

"No one knew. It was at night and I woke up to the sounds of screaming people and the smell of smoke."

"How does anything burn? It was a cavern right." Genis asked.

"There were plants. Large palm fronds that grew in a dark purple color were abundant. And, there was a rare species of flower that grew in the depths of the lake refered to simply as a 'Sapphire Lily'."

"How did they survive without sunlight?" Raine asked skeptically.

"They drew their power from the crystals was all I was told."

"... Wow. I bet that was an amazing city. I wish I could've gone." Lloyd pouted.

"I hope that one day, I'll find it again." Aurora frowned.

_That's who she was! Mithos wanted us to destroy all of the people. If he found out we failed, this could end badly for both myself and Yuan._ Kratos thought. _But I'm not sure if I could kill her._

* * *

After three hours of walking, they finally made it to Haknoesia Peak.

"Great goddess, that mountian is high!" Lloyd gasped at the sight of the stone formation jutting out of the ground.

"I guess you've never seen a mountain either?" Genis turned to the swordswoman. She shook her head. They all headed up the mountain path until they reached a small house. Inside was an old man surrounded by artifacts. Raine practically drooled over the house's adornments. Kratos approached the man.

"Were you sold a book earlier by a man, a boy, a woman, and a large lion humanoid?"

"Why yes. Yes I was sold a book by people with that same description."

"May we please have it."

"Of course not! Why would I let you people have it! It cost me a lot of gald!"

"We are the Chosen's group! I suggest you let us have it. Now." Raine entered the conversation. The man stroked his chin.

"Tell you what. If you let me have this young lady as payment, I'll let you see it. Surely you don't need this cripple." He grabbed Aurora's arm. She could see the man from her nightmare earlier behind her bandana.

"NO!" She shrieked. "Not again!" She dashed out the door. Everyone stared at the girl as she slammed the entrance behind her. They all flinched at the sound.

"Hehe, she's playing hard to get." The old man smirked. Even Raine couldn't take it. Her hand connected with the man's face so hard, she was sure she fractured some bones. Perverts were one of the things she hated the most. He rubbed his cheek and continued speaking. "Fine. If I can't have her, you can go retrieve the Spiritua Statue from the House of Salvation and bring it to me in exchange for taking a LOOK at the book." Kratos glared, but accepted his deal. They all left to retrieve Aurora who was sitting at the entrance to the trail.

"Are... you okay Aurora?" Lloyd put a hand on her shoulder. She shook her head faintly.

"Yeah. Let's go." She got up and led the group off.

* * *

They had to set up camp that night, since the HoS was too far a walk. Aurora once again, refused dinner. She took her spot as far away from the campfire as possible and sat up in fetal posistion. _Not again. Not again. Not again. Not again._ Was all she could think as she rocked back and forth unnoticeably.

"Is she going to be alright?" Lloyd asked quietly so she couldn't hear.

"I dunno." Genis whispered back.

"I've never seen her act like this." Collette looked worried.

Raine was even talking with the children. "Whatever it is, just let her be. It'll probably pass. Just go to bed."

"Aw." Lloyd sighed. "I wanted to ask you something."

"What?" Raine asked.

"What did that man want to do with Aurora?"

Raine paled. "Goodnight Lloyd." She scrambled over to her spot and fell asleep. Lloyd frowned but laid down too.

Goodnights chorused around the campfire.

Finally, Kratos and Aurora were the only one's left up. The man glanced sideways at her.

"Get some sleep. You've been doing that for an hour now."

She didn't respond. Instead, the rocking motion of her body continued.

"Aurora?"

"..."

He walked over to the woman and glared down at her. "Get some sleep." He ordered. She jerked back to reality and looked up to the man. Fear was marked in every corner of her expression. She nodded weakly and fell asleep, still in fetal posistion, just on her side now. He rubbed his temples and went back to his post. Something wasn't right. He knew it. And, for some reason, he felt guilty for it.

* * *

Me: Finally, a long-ish chapter.

Genis: 'Bout time. The last two were under 3,000 words.

Me: Sorry guys -.-' Review please. You'll get a cake... And I'll hurt Zelos...

Zelos: Meep! Why me. Why my beautiful face?

Me: You say beautiful, I say queer.

Zelos: That's so mean!

Genis: No it's not. That's hilarious.

Zelos: C'mere you little brat. (Mauls Genis)

Me: Looks like I didn't need that laser gun after all. (Chucks laser gun out the window.) Review please!


	12. Chapter 11

Me: O.o'!

Lloyd: What?

Me: I've got five reviews for that last chapter! YYYEEEEESSSSS!!! XD It's a lot to respond to but its worth it.

Lloyd: That's my cue to leave. Tell me when she's done raving.

Me: Thanks to AkatsukisNumber1Fangirl, blackroseofdeath49, Isis-1986, AnimeAngel809 (Who's reviewed on all my chapters sinc chappie 2!) and ShadowVDP. Yep ShadowVDP, you're famous now. You should change your name to ShadowV**_I_**P. Hahahaha... okay that was a crappy joke. And didja know I have psychic powers! XD Anyways, you all get... huge mounds of icecream, since i found out AnimeAngel809 doesn't like cake! (To be honest, I don't care for it either. Unless it's cheesecake. I LUV cheesecake XD) Cookies for the readers too! I'm sorry if the transistion into more romantic stuff is awkward and unrealistic. Kratos fics are hard to write -.-' I had to go to the orthodontist today. (Sob!) My teeth, freakin, HURT! T.T Good thing it doesn't restrict me from writing, or you'd all go fictionless for days.

Lloyd: (Walks back in with plate of cheesecake.)

Me: OMG LLOYD GIVE ME THAT CHEESESCAKE NOW!

Lloyd: No way!

Me: B-But...

Lloyd: Oh boy.

Me: WAAAAAHHHHH! T.T MAYBE I'LL GET A NEW MUSE WHO'LL SHARE WITH ME AND NOT MAKE SNARKY COMMENTS AND-

Lloyd: (Hands me a slice of cake.)

Me: I LOVE YOU LLOYD! YOU'RE THE BEST MUSE EVER! (Hugs Lloyd.)

Lloyd: Can't... breathe...

Me: (Let's go to eat cheesecake.)

Lloyd: Even when you're being nice you handicap us. Guess it's fate. Oh well, DragonLady24 doesn't own ToS. Just her addiction to cheesecake.

Me: Oh yeah? (Holds out bottle of potion)

Lloyd: O.O MINE! MINE!

Me: (Throws bottle at Lloyd.) Sheesh, and you call me addicted. Enjoy the fic while I enjoy my cheesecake! ^.^ (A/N: This sentence makes the chapter over 2,600 words. Yay for OCD'ness XD)

* * *

Chapter 11: The Idiotic Palmacoasta Residents.

Dawn broke over the Palmacoasta region as our heroes finished their early morining breakfast.

"I love muffins!" Collette smiled after finishing her plate.

"Yeah! I could eat them for every meal!" Lloyd said through a mouthful of fluffy goodness.

_Slap!_ "Don't talk with your mouth full Lloyd. It's disgusting." Raine scolded the teenage boy.

"Lloyd, you say that about everything we eat." Genis wasn't entertained by his friend's eating habits by now.

"Well, it's true!" The swordsman frowned.

Aurora seemed to take on the role of a second Kratos and isolated her self to a corner. _They came back._ She thought. _Stupid freaking man had to come back and ruin me again. These nightmares won't stop plaguing my mind. Someone, please, take them away._ She finished her breakfast and slid the half-eaten muffin next to Genis. He frowned at her.

"Are you gonna be okay?" He asked. She shook her head slightly in response and gathered up her belongings. Everyone else followed in suit. Back on the road, Raine led the front while Genis, Collette, and Lloyd chatted in their usual circle of commotion, and Aurora stood in the back with Kratos. Her head was hung low, dark thoughts occupying her mind. Try as she might, they just wouldn't let her be. The mercenary looked to her.

"Is there something bothering you?"

No response. He glared at her for a moment. When the woman refused to answer, he tapped her shoulder. She finched, like he expected, but she did it so robotically, as if there was an autopilot on while her conscience was somewhere else. He tried to wave a hand in frint of her face, but all of the brown locks surrounded her countenance, making a sort of shield around it.

"Aurora?" He asked again.

Still nothing.

"You need to look forward and be on your gaurd." He stated, hoping a sense of duty would bring her back from the depths of her mind.

Nope. Nothing.

Glaring, he took a last resort and forced her up by grabbing her forehead and pushing. That seemed to snap her back to reality. She gasped and looked around, squinting when the sun hit her eyes.

"Pay attention." Kratos ordered. The woman looked towards his voice adn nodded.

"Sorry." She voiced herself, but it wasn't the normal, perky voice. No, this one was soft and hurt. The man's brows furrowed, but he kept walking forward.

Two priests were standing in the main room of the HoS when the group arrived. Raine stepped forward and acted as the party's voice.

"I know this will sound odd, but, we need the Spiritua Statue." She smiled fakely at them.

"Why do you need the Statue?" The older one asked. His partner starting to sweat in uncomfortable places.

"We need it to continue our journey." Raine continued. "Please, let us have the Statue."

"Alright. If you are the Chosen's group and need it that badly then-"

"NO!" The younger one shouted. Everyone stared at him. "I- uh... um." He swalloed the blie rising in his throat. "I, uh..."

"You what?" Genis pressed.

"I-I lost the Statue okay!" He burst out. His elder gasped.

"How could you lose it? If you lost it, it wouldn't be here." He gestured towards the alter. The other man shook his head.

"No. That one's a fake. I had a dwarf in Iselia make a copy." He hung his head in shame. Hot blood rushed to his cheeks.

"Dirk?" Lloyd asked. The man nodded.

"Wow. You're dad's really famous." Genis commented. He didn't know how true that was.

"I can't believe it! We're going to be regarded as the poorest excuses for Spiritua's followers all across Sylvarant!"

"What's so special about this one anyway?" Lloyd asked.

The young priest laughed nervously. "Well, you see-"

"The body is made of gold and the halo is made of diamonds! It was a gift from the Church of Martel!" The other finished.

"How did you manage to lose it in the first place?" Genis asked.

"I took it with us to the Thoda Gyeser so thieves wouldn't make off with it while we were gone, but I kinda... dropped it in the gyeser." He squeaked and braced himself for his elder's fury.

"Well a lot of good that did us! Our precious statue is in the middle of boiling hot water!" The man's face was red.

"Why can't we just take this one?" Collette asked.

"No. If you get close enough, you can tell it's a fake." The guilty priest informed them.

"Then I guess we'll have to retrive it then." Raine sighed.

"... Can't belive they dropped it into a freakin' gyeser." Genis mumbled as he followed Rain out the door. AS they headed out, a familair person ran up to them.

"G-Guys! I-It's me Niel. You need to go to P-Palmacoasta right away." He was bent over gasping for air as he relayed the news.

"Why?" Aurora asked.

"D-Desians."

"Let's go!" Lloyd shouted, not leaving any reaction time for the rest. They sighed and ran after the vengeful teen.

* * *

When they arrived, people were crowded around the town square. (circle?) The group pushed thier way through the masses to get to the action. A man who looked like he took steriods was standing beside a noose with a woman as it's victim. Desians were also spread out, keeping the curious crowd at bay. A higher ranking Desian waited for the citizens to calm down before charging the woman with her crimes.

"This woman has refused to service the Desians and our causes. Lord Magnius has ordered for her to be executed at exactly noon in two minutes. All of ye shall witness what it means to defile the Desians.

"Wait. That's Cocoa!" Colette cried.

Genis scrunched up his eyebrows. "Uh, don't they have a militia?" He asked. A nearby patron informed him that they were out practicing. "Ugh. I bet they waited for this window of opportunity. Disgusting jerkfaces."

"Mwahah!" The ugly red-head Grand Cardinal cackled. "Watch and fear vermin!" He walked in front of the death trap. "You inferiored beings shall knelt before my greatness!" He shouted.

"Pay attention in english class much?" Genis asked sarcastically. A tiny boy squirmed past the Desian crowd control and ren over to Magnius.

"Let the nice lady go you big meanie!" He shouted and continued to repeatedly kick the brute in the shin. His outburst would've been comicl if not for the circumstances it was under. What happened next made it hard for Aurora to not rip the Cardinal's still beating heart out of his chest and beat him to an unrecognizable pulp. A sickening crunch could be heard as the sadistic man kicked the boy forcefully in the stomach. The child flew through the air and landed in a heap in the middle of the circular town square. A shrill cry of "BOBBY!" could be heard from the boy's frazzled mother. No more than a few whimpers came from the boy. Aurora ripped out her blade and charged towards Magnius.

"You monster!" She cried and slashed at Magnius. He easily deflected it with his large battle axe. Hearing the boy's breathing get shallower, the woman abandoned her fight and ran over to the child. Her companions covered her while she helped him. Scooping the broken boy up in her arms she murmed the words to "Heaven's Tear" softly. He immedeatly curled around his savoir.

"Am I dead?" He asked fearfully.

"No." Aurora whispered soothingly. How could someone, regardless of race, do this to a child? He looked up at her pale face.

"Are you an angel?" He asked. The girl chuckled.

"No. You are safe now." Next thing she knew, a hand pushed the swordswoman away.

"Get away from my son! Dirty cripple!" Another woman grabbed the boy's hand.

"Thank you nice lady!" The child called out to her as his prejudiced mother drug him off, trying to shush him. Aurora smiled. The little one's gratitude was all she needed. Standing up, fury was etched into her face. Turning towards her group, she saw that only four Desians were left, and acted like bodyguards for Magnius. She was a blur. In five seconds, the minons were on the ground in a bloody pool, and Magnius recived a scar big enough to kill any normal man.

"Argh! Retreat!" He called and faded away. Colette was on the platform of the noose loosening Cocoa from its deadly grip, Lloyd and Kratos tryed to disperse the villagers, Raine was wlking around healing whomever needed it, and Genis sat by Aurora.

"Why did you do that?" He asked. Aurora looked at Genis strangely.

"Why wouldn't I do it?" She countered.

"Raine and Kratos didn't agree with that move, you'll have hell to pay tonight." He said. The woman frowned.

"Was I supposed to let the boy die?"

"Apparently."

"So that's what this group is all about eh? Sacrifing others in order for regeneration?" She didn't know how right she was. "I'm not sure if I'm okay with that."

* * *

By the time Palmacoasta settled down, the sun was going down. The group congregated around the inn sighed. "We've gotta long walk tomorrow." He frowned. "Stupid priest... had to go and lose the statue..." Genis rolled his eyes.

"Just be glad we know where it is or we'd be searching every inch of the Palmacoasta region for it."

"True."

They all sat in silence.

"Why are the people here so stupid?" Genis asked.

"Huh?" Colette cocked her head.

"I mean really. Dorr mistook us for the wrong group, that priest dropped the most priceless statue of Spiritua into a freakin gyeser, even the Desian Ranch leader is idiotic. Did you hear the way he talked. I wouldn't live through a two word conversation with him."

"...He has a point." Raine said.

More silence.

"We could create another Palmacoasta if we cloned Lloyd." Genis smirked.

"Hey!" The teen blushed.

"...Aurora, what exactly were you thinking today?" Kratos asked. Everyone looked to him.

"Oh my gosh! Kratos spoke! It's the end of the world as we know it!" Lloyd shouted. Ignoring that comment, for his son's safety, he continued.

"Running blind into a conflict like that will get someone killed."

The woman glared. "Was I just supposed to let that child die in the streets?"

"Yes."

Aurora flinched, then stood up. "You, you're just as bad as that Magnius! You wouldn't save a child?"

"As long as it doesn't-"

"'Hinder the journey' am I right?" She glared accusingly. The other four member scooted their chairs back. This could get ugly.

"Yes."

"... Why are you so cruel?"

"I'm not cruel. If your outburst caused us to lose Colette, the Chosen, then the journey would fail. Therefore, everyone will suffer." He concluded. "Are you willing to sacrifice the whole world for a child?" Aurora was dumbfounded now. She couldn't come up with a reasonable rebutal. Her eyebrow twitched in frustration.

"Fine." She spat. "Next time, I'll make sure to let a child die in cold blood. Thanks for letting me know how things run around here." She stormed up the stairs to her room. Everyone stared wide-eyed at the mercenary. He sat there silently, as if pondering something, then stood.

"Goodnight." Was his anti-climactic answer to everyone's unspoken question of 'what now?'

"Great." Lloyd whispered to Genis. "Now Aurora hates both Kratos and the Professor."

"I'm not sure I'm comfortable with him either now." Genis replied. His older friend nodded before yawning.

"'Night guys. I'm going to sleep."

"Goodnight." The rest chorused. Colette and Genis joined him soon after. Raine was left downstairs, torn.

_Finally, Kratos and Aurora dislike each other but, I'm not sure if I like Kratos's morals. Oh well. Go to bed Raine. Time for bed._ "Yes ma'am." She chuckled to herself and went to her room as well.

* * *

Me: Ah, the joys of pain pills. They're starting to kick in. Sorry this was short guys, but I'm beat. Please Review! You get ice cream plus a cookie! XD I need some sugar if I'm going to keep writing this. Goodnight to all reading this fic. See you in the mornin' which is like, 1:00 in the afternoon for me.


	13. Chapter 12

Me: Hahaha... oh, that's rich. Oh! You guys are here. Me? I'm just looking at funny pictures on . You guys really need to visit it. Seriously! They've got some hilarious stuff on there. I have a few announcements to make before we get started. (It took me ten seconds to type started. Darn fingers!) 1.) My teeth ache no more! 2.) I'm really in tune with my reviewers. First, I fix a problem AnimeAngel809 had with the story before reading the complaint, and ShadowVDP went to the tooth people right after me. And thanks for reviewing guys. silk345 reviewed again too! ICE CREAM! 3.) My friend on WoW did something so freakin hilarious, I'm gonna make Lloyd do it when he's drunk a second time. (You didn't seriously think he'd only get drunk once in this fic did you?) Trust me. You'll laugh so hard you'll throw up your last meal. 4.) Four's my lucky number! Yay!

Lloyd: *.* Ish feel woozy. Hellosh little duckies. How're you today? Fine? Mesh too.

Me: -.-' Lloyd, give me the potion.

Lloyd: Whatsha potion? Is it thish pretty bottle you gave me?

Me: Yes. Now Lloyd is going to give DragonLady24 that pretty bottle back and go take these pills with some water, okay?

Lloyd: Okaysh. (Drops bottle onto floor and passes out before he gets the pills.)

Me: O.o (Kicks Lloyd gently.) Yo! Still alive buddy?

Lloyd: ... (Drool slips from the corner of mouth.)

Me: Okay... on with the fic.

* * *

Chapter 12: Childish Antics x Divine Klutziness + Adult Fueds = Hilarity LOL XD Yay math! (Not really.)

Aurora seemed to seperate herself from the rest of the group. Her actions were limited to nods and occasional glares. The other two adults of the group had pissed her off. Great. The preperation that morning took less than thirty minutes. They walked in an odd formation. Kratos led the group with Aurora and Raine staying for behind on either side, making a triangle. The kids huddled around each other in the back doing what kids do best. Scheme. Before the group cleared the gate, a group of kids ran by playing what looked like tag. One of them stopped mid-run and went to Aurora. It was the boy from yesterday. He tugged on her sleeve. She bent down to get level with him.

"Hi!" He beamed at her. The woman smiled back at him. "You're that nice lady that helped me yesterday. Here, have this." He placed something in her hand. From the feel of it, she knew it was a gel, just not what kind. Her companions went silent. Still smiling, the girl shook her head.

"Why don't you keep it. I have some already. Besides, you'll probably need it more than I will." She insisted. He frowned.

"But I buyed it with all my gald. Take it. No give backs." He hid his hands stubbornly behind his back so she couldn't give him the gel. Aurora sighed.

"Okay, I'll keep it. And it's bought." She corrected and slipped the gift into her pack. The boy smiled and took off again with his friends. The woman turned around.

"Anyone want to tell me what it is I got?" She asked.

"A miracle gel." Genis answered. Aurora sweatdropped.

"A miracle gel? How did he afford that?"

"Wow. Even the children here are rich." Lloyd commented.

The girl kept staring forward, not knowing which way Kratos was. "I guess it paid to be kind after all." She smirked.

"Hmph." Was all he said, grunted, whatever.

Keeping true to that funky formation, they started the LONG walk to Thoda Gyeser. Let's see what the kids are up to shall we? They were all huddled around each other, forcing to to walk sideways.

"Wow. Everyone's mad at each other." Lloyd frowned.

"Really? I wouldn't have guessed." Genis rolled his eyes.

"This is horrible. How can we help?" Colette asked.

All three scrunched up their brows as if it were going to help them think clearer.

"Well, we gotta decide which two to help first." Genis figured.

"Really, it's just Aurora against Kratos and Raine. We just have to pick between either adult."

"Let's do eeny-meeny-miny-mo!" Colette put her hands together. Ah yes. What every indesicive child uses to make a desicion. Both the guys looked at her questioningly, but went along with it. What other choice did they have? "Okay. This finger will be Kratos, and this one will be Raine." The ditzy girl marked her pointer and middle fingers. "Lloyd, why don't you do it." The teen smiled awkwardly, but proceeded to sing the kiddish song.

"Eeny-meeny-miny-mo, catch a nightraid by the toe, if it hollers let it go, eeny-meeny-miny-mo. Raine!" He announced a little to loudly.

"Yes Lloyd. What is it?" The teacher asked.

"Uh, nothing." He waved her away. She raised an eyebrow and went back to walking. The swordsman blushed and turned to his friends. "Okay, so we deal with Raine first." He said. "Everybody think."

"You sure Lloyd? I think you'll hurt yourself if you do that." Genis said wryly.

"Shut up and think already."

...

"Ooh! Ooh! We could make them each talk about their problems!" Colette raised a finger in the air.

"Uh, Colette."

"Yes Genis?"

"That's a great idea, but the whole reason we're doing this is because they _won't_ talk to each other."

"Oh." She put a finger to her mouth.

"Hey, it was still a good idea though." Lloyd patted the blonde's shoulder. Her peppiness seemed to be insantly restored.

...

"I've got it!" Genis snapped his finger. "Lloyd, Colette, you two go distract Aurora while I get Raine close enough to converste with. After that, just play along." He ordered and left them for his sister.

"Alright! It's makeup time." Lloyd punched a fist in the air.

"... Lloyd?"

"Yeah, I know that sounded wrong." He turned around so Colette didn't see his red face. The two teens approached Aurora.

"Hi Aurora. What's up?" Lloyd asked.

"Nothing really. You would know more than I do." She chuckled and 'looked' upwards. He gasped.

"Oh no. That's not what it means! It-"

"I know what it means Lloyd, I was just messing with you. So, what's up?" She asked back.

"Nothing really. Colette and I were just bored so we came to talk to you."

"Thanks. I'm _so_ glad I could be a source of entertainment for you."

"No I-"

"Teasing."

Colette stepped in front of her friend so he could take a breather. "What was it like growing up? What were your favorite hobbies." She inquired.

"Well, there's only so much you can do in a stuffy cave. Hm... I guess swimming would be my favorite hobby. The feel of it on your skin is refreshing." She answered.

"I know what you mean!" The klutz beamed before tripping over her feet.

"Colette!" The woman helped her up while Raine and Genis rushed over. The mage leaned towards the blonde.

"Nice thinking Colette. Now they're together."

"Nice thinking? What did I think Genis? Are you psychic?" (He isn't but I am XD) Genis faceplamed before turning towards the women.

"Hey! I have an idea. Let's play the favorites game." Genis suggested. Everyone turned to him.

"The... favorites game?" Raine asked skeptically.

"Uh, yeah! Two people play to see how much they have in common. How about Raine and Aurora play! I'll ask the questions." The women glared at the boy, but he began before they could start.

(Questions will be asked by Genis. Aurora answers first, Raine answers second.)

"Alright... favorite, color?"

"Blue."

"Red."

"Okay... favortie, hobby?"

"Playing music."

"Reading."

"Hm... favorite, seasoning?"

"Um, salt."

"...Pepper..."

"Next... favorite, element?"

"Water."

"Fire."

"Let's see... favorite, exercise?"

"Swimming."

"Running."

"Uh... favorite, flower?"

"Lily."

"Rose."

"Tsk tsk... favorite, animal?"

"Snake."

"Cat."

"Let me think... favorite, uh, favorite... meat?"

"...Shrimp."

"Chicken..."

"Um... favorite, person?"

"I can't choose."

"That would make some people feel bad."

"Alright then... least favorite person."

"Genis!"

"Stop asking us these questions. It's a waste of time!"

"Okay I'm done." The instigator/ interrogator scurried off with his partners in crime.

Both dumbfounded women stared after them. "Silly children." They said simultaneously. Glaring at each other, they walked further apart, Raine towards the children, and Aurora towards Kratos.

Back with the kids.

"Woah. The Professor and Aurora are _nothing_ alike." Lloyd frowned.

"Yeah. But I thought opposites attracted." Colette said.

"I thought birds of a feather, flock together." Genis countered.

"But, they aren't birds silly."

"They aren't magnets either." Genis rolled his eyes.

"Oh, right." The girl giggled.

"Okay. Giving up on Raine and Aurora, I guess Kratos is next in line." Lloyd guessed.

"Ooh! Rock, paper, siscsors this time!" Colette announced. The boys raised an eyebrow, questioning their friend's brain function.

"But... Kratos is the only one left Colette there's no need to..." Genis stopped when she gave him the infamous puppy-dog eyes. He rolled his eyes. "Okay. I'll be Kratos, and you'll be Kratos. Lloyd, count us off."

The teen sighed. "One... Two... Three... Go!"

"Paper!" Genis shouted.

"Rock!" Colette held out a fist. Her eyes glazed over. "Why do I always lose?" She frowned.

"Maybe its because you use rock every time. Pick another weapon next time Colette." Genis shrugged. Lloyd put a hand around the upset blonde's shoulders.

"It's okay. Rock seems like it would be the most powerful. How paper beats it beats me. I think Genis tweaked it." He stated.

The mage sighed. "Finally, you think logically Lloyd and you're still wrong. Paper covers rock."

"But the rock could rip it to shreds!"

"It doesn't matter."

"Yes it does!"

"No way!"

"Uh-huh!"

"Nu-uh!"

"Uh-huh!"

"Nu-uh!"

"Um... guys. Who do we help next?" The girl had put herself between the arguing boys. They both smacked their foreheads.

"Kratos. Remember Colette?" Genis asked.

"Oh, right!" She smiled and skipped off to Aurora. Lloyd looked to his friend.

"Did you have a plan?"

"Nope."

"Hey Auror-AH!" The Chosen tripped over for the second time today, except this time, she knocked Aurora over too...

Who fell into Kratos.

The swordswoman was laying over him forming a T shape. (Or an X one for all you picky people.) Her head went fuzzy for a moment. When sense came back to her, she rubbed her head.

"What just happened?" She asked.

"I believe the Chosen tripped into you, causing you to trip into me, resulting in all three of us falling down." The mercenary's back vibrated under her stomach. She eeped and quickly jumped off of him. "Thank you." He said. Aurora was to busy wiping her tunic down like a nasty stain was on it to notice him.

"Oops! Sorry!" Colette smiled apologetically.

"Colette..." Lloyd and Genis groaned.

"At least her klutziness saved us some planning." Genis whispered to Lloyd.

"Yeah, the angel transformation probably make it lucky." He whispered back.

It was silent all the way to the gyeser.

* * *

All six of the group walked into the tiny HoS located beside the dock.

"Welcome to the Thoda Gyeser, Sylvarant's biggest attraction. A ride to the gyeser itself is two-hundred gald per person, and a stay for the night is one-hundred gald." The receptionist greeted them warmly. Aurora could feel her head get cloudy. Kratos stepped forward to answer the employee.

"Yes, we would like..."

The blue clad swordswoman fainted.

"Four rooms please." The mercenary finished. The receptionist frowned.

"We only have three rooms left."

"Then we'll take those." He put the gald on the desk.

"Upstairs to the right." She anwered, filling a large bag with her earnings. The mercenary nodded and picked the unconscious woman into his arms.

* * *

Aurora could hear faint murmuring around where she was laying. The room she was in had two beds opposite of each other and lamp in between. A simple vainity adorned a tiny corner. She groaned lightly to announce that she was awake.

"Huh?" She asked.

"You passed out back there." Genis announced.

"What?"

"You passed out." Lloyd repeated.

"How? I felt fine this-"

_GROWL_

"... I think you need to eat." The mage said.

"He's right. I can count your ribs from ten-feet away." Lloyd said. The girl felt around her stomach. Sure enough, they were bony.

"I've made dinner already." He announced. "I'll bring you some up."

"I don't need to be served on Genis." She snorted.

"You," He pushed her back down with a finger. "Need to rest. I'll bring up the food. Don't worry about it." With that said, the boy skid out of the room. Lloyd and the woman sat in silence for a moment.

"Lloyd," She started. "Where exactly am I?"

"Uh... in a bed."

"I knew that." She sighed.

"Well, you're in your's and Kratos's room for tonight."

"Oh." She said. Wait. Her's and _Kratos's?_ Her eyebrows shot up. "Hell no!" She jumped out of the covers, which made her woozy. Her hand grabbed Lloyd's arm for support.

"I'll get my ownr room thank you very much."

"There were only three left Aurora." Lloyd dashed her hopes.

"Why can't I room with Colette?" She asked.

"Raine said the had _girl_ problems they needed to discuss." He said as if it were insulting to have only _girl_ problems.

"Well, I'm a girl too." She rebeled.

"I said that, but Raine said she knew Colette longer and was the one she needed to talk to."

"Fine then." She straightened herself. "I'll sleep outside."

"There's nowhere _to_ sleep outside. Everything in the gates it marked with roads."

"Then I'll sleep _outside_ the gates."

"Monsters come out at night."

"They come out during the day too."

"But, you'll be asleep."

"Lloyd." She sighed. He put a hand over her mouth to stop her.

"I know you don't like Kratos. I don't either, but I don't think he's a bad person. Just an unsociable, pissed off at the world kind of guy." He finished. The girl sighed.

"Fine, I'll stay inside." She snarled.

"Good. Here come's Genis with your food." Lloyd announced. The cook came through the door with a bowl of vegetable soup.

"I hope its okay heated up again. Everyone else ate about an hour ago." He chuckled nervously. The swordswoman thanked him and waved them off. She ate the whole bowl, not really tasting any of it. Sighing, she set her dirty dishes beside her bed and laid down. Kratos came in after the sun went in hiding.

"You need to eat more if you're going to be any help on this journey. We could've made it to Thoda Gyeser today if you hadn't fainted." He said bluntly.

"Gee. Thanks for caring about me." The woman muttered under her breath. He glared at her, then sighed.

"Go to sleep."

"Yes sir." She replied sarcastically. Her feet kicked off her boots and curled up under her. Like a child shielding up for the night, Aurora pulled the covers plus the bed sheets around her as she curled up into a tight ball. Whoever did housecleaning was going to have a time fixing that bed tomorrow.

"You'll suffocate doing that." She could barely hear Kratos through the layers of wool. Pretending not to hear, she curled up tighter. The man shook his head and took off his boots, gloves, and cape before getting ready to feign sleep. The woman scrunched up her eyebrows and braced herself for the night. She could only hope that he stayed in _his_ bed where he _belonged_.

* * *

Several hours had passed by and no movement came from the mound of covers. Kratos was actually begining to worry that she commited suicide. Not that it mattered to him, of course. A few more minutes passed by before he gave into his instincts and walked over to her side of the room. His hand pushed back the thick covers enough to reveal her face. His ears, enhanced with angelic status, still had a hard time hearing the soft breathing coming from her slightly open mouth. He shook his head. He'd saved her just in time. Maybe he should've left her alone. That would make his job easier. The only thing that kept him from doing so was a nagging little voice in the back of his mind that said _Not yet. Figure out what she is first, then assassinate her._ He nodded feeling confident in his desicion, and slid back under his own covers.

* * *

Me: (Cracks knuckles.) All in a day's work hehe. Or night's. Now for something to drink because my mouth is DRY! (Don't comment on the nightraid thing. I know you find them in Tethe'alla but it was the only thing I could think of at the time.)

Lloyd: (Throwing up in trash bin.)

Me: You gonna be okay?

Lloyd: (Thumbs up.)

Me: If you say so. Review and you get ice cream! You already get a cookie for reading. Go ahead. Even if its anonymus, a _flame_, I'll still take it. XD


	14. Chapter 13

PMS-y Me: 'Sup guys. I feel like crap! How was your day? Mine? Painful.

Lloyd: Nya! More girl problems!

PMS-y Me: Shaddup Lloyd!

Lloyd: Telling me to shut up is like telling yourself to shut up! I'm just the negative part of your personality characterized as Lloyd!

PMS-y Me: Then shut up me!

Lloyd: Me shut up? How about you stop playing that stupid carameldancen song over and over again. It's driving me nuts!

Shy Me: Yeah! You even made yourself embarrassed because you played it so much.

Lloyd: Yeah, and loudly too!

PMS-y Me: I got addicted!

Lloyd: No kidding.

PMS-y Me: But the song was catchy...

Lloyd: That... and you laughed your butt off when you saw the, "Cause He'll Kick You... In The ****" picture! (I was looking up funny zelda videos on you tube, and Ganondorf was kicking Zant where it hurts. And the caption was funny.) Get ahold of yourself!

PMS-y Me: It was funny though. I'm sorry. (sniffle) WAHHH! T.T

Lloyd: Calm down. Your embarrassing us in front of the fans...

PMS-y Me: Waaaahhhh!

Shy Me: ////

Announcer: (He was hired to read the script I wrote BEFORE I started.) Ahem. First, a confession. I have never done any of the side quests. :( But, I've read about them and are trying to go back through the game and do them all. Next, my pshycic powers have yet to fail me! XD Fixed AnimeAngel809's complaint before she thought it! Thanks to all who reviwed. This includes AnimeAngel809, Evil Hell Master, and ShadowVDP! (I waited two days and only got three reviews...) You all get some homemade ice cream I made today over at my grandparents house today. (Which I made BEFORE... I started...) Enjoy the fic!

Logical Me: If we're all doing the intro... who's writing the fic?

Psychotic Me: I IS! MWAHAHA! XD

All Other Me's and Lloyd: -.-' ...

Psychotic Me: IT"S FIC TIME!

* * *

Chapter 13: Seriously. Washtubs? We Could Be Killed!

* * *

A small girl sat on the edge of a bed. Her head hung between her knees in defeat, her long hair forming a curtain around her pale face. Two men could be heard outside along with the clinging sound of gald being swapped for pleasure. She sighed, bracing herself for the long hours stretched before her. There was no escaping fate. It was a different bed, and a different man every night. The client party walked through the door and shut it behind him. Advancing toward the slave, his hands roughly pushed her down on the bed and practically ripped the clothing off her form.

She didn't resist.

There was no escaping fate.

* * *

Nightmares. They were coming back. Aurora shrieked and threw the covers off of her. The sun's rays hadn't even broke through the horizon yet. Kratos cringed at the loud sound from his bed. Angelic hearing could be a pain sometimes. The woman sat up hyperventilating, her palms using up all of their strength to keep her body upright. A damp outline of the girl could be found on the bed. After a few seconds, her shaking limbs managed to curl around her. The slender form rocked gently back and forth. Kratos listened closely enough and managed to hear a murmer of "No. No. No. No. No." being chanted like a mantra. He rolled over to face the scarred girl sitting on her pillow.

"No what?" He asked. Her face shot towards his direction. She shook her head simply and went back to chanting. The mercenary frowned and sat up in his bed. "Is this going to be a regular occurance?"

The woman ignored him. He glared and laid back down. "Go back to sleep." He ordered. Barely registering that demand, Aurora shakily slipped back under the sheets, but her body refused rest. If sleep found her again, so would the nightmares. She didn't feel safe in there. She had to get out. Her feet swung off the bed and hit the cold, hardwood floor.

"Where are you going?" Kratos tried to provoke her to speak, but to no avail. Completely disregarding the swordsman, Aurora strode out the door. The man grunted and decided that he'd better follow her. By the time he reached the HoS door, the swordswoman's tiny figure retreated to the beach. The man silently followed her all the way to where the sand began. He looked down to see her small footprints adorning the grainy substance. His eyes strayed from the footprints to the person who made them. She was on her knees beside the water. He stared questioningly before she dunked her head into the ice cold liquid. That woke her up. Her nerves pleasured in the icy sensation that trailed up and down her spine. The swordsman ran over to her and grabbed her by the shoulders. Despite them being covered in freezing water, he could feel the warmth her blood emitted through his gloves.

"Have you gone mad?" He asked sternly. The girl seemed to snap from here, to somwhere far away. Her expression filled with fear.

"I'm sorry! Please! Don't!" Her arms came up to her face in an attempt to shield them from what may come. Kratos raised an eyebrow.

"Aurora?" He realeased her.

"Please! No!" She scrambled backwards. "I wasn't going to! I swear!"

"Going to what?"

"Not again! Please!"

The man could see tears start to appear under her bandana. "Aurora. Come out of it." He barked. Her countenance froze and immediately morphed into a more alert one than the mask of dread she'd been wearing.

"Kratos?" She asked.

"Hmph." He grunted. Before the confused angel could ask her what that was all about, she darted past him and back into the HoS. He remembered a night before where he could hear her screams. He was going to find out what that was. Especially if she was going to be like this every night.

* * *

The morning went by quickly. Genis had prepared a small meal of fruit salad for breakfast, (Which he forced Aurora to eat.) and the rest packed as they ate. The day was chock full of Seal breaking. Once packing was finished, they all signed up for a... washtub. They are now all standing at the dock.

"Washtubs?" Genis raised an eyebrow. "Wow. I can't believe you had to blow all your money on a washtub Aurora."

"It's fine. I'm sure I'll find more." She flicked her wrist as if it were no big deal.

"You however," Raine grabbed both Lloyd and Genis's ears. "Blew your money on something as useless as potion, causing both Kratos and I to have to spend four-hundred gald each!"

"Ow Raine! Let go!" Lloyd clawed at his pinched lobe. The teacher huffed and let go. The teen frowned and rubbed his ear. "Anyway, this looks like fun!"

"You won't be entertained for at least five seconds with that piece of wood." Genis rolled his eyes.

"Hey!"

"Get in. We don't have time to waste arguring over trivial matters." Kratos climbed into the boat with the purple sash around it. Raine swallowed back tears, knowing her time was approaching.

"Killjoy." Lloyd muttered, stepping into the red-ribboned one.

"Yay!" Collette hopped in the white washtub.

"Here goes." Aurora got on her knees and felt around for her's. Finding it, she carefully stretched out her foot and stepped. She misjudged the distance, causing her to flip over and fall into the ocean. The kids laughed at her childish mistake.

...

She didn't come up. This made Raine feel much better. The one who saved her last time hasn't surfaced yet, and they were riding on hunks of nailed wood. Funfun.

"Aurora?" Colette peered over the edge of her boat.

...

Kratos was even worrying now.

...

Her head popped above the water about five feet away from her washtub. "A little help with direction would be nice!" She called out.

"Over here!" Genis yelled. The woman spun her body towards the voice and headed forward. After a few minutes of navigation, her hands brushed up against the boardwalk. She tried to pull herself up, but it was just too high.

"I'm gonna have to share." She announced.

"Ooh! Me!" The mage called. "C'mon Raine. Get in your washtub." He grabbed his sisters sleeve and pulled her towards the orange marked tub.

"Ahh!" She screamed. The looks she recieved from her companions were priceless.

"Ahh?" Lloyd did a crappy imitation of her shriek. It sounded more like a sheep. Raine's eyes shot open.

"Uh, um... I mean. Ah, this, should be fun. Hehe." Her face drained of all its color as her boot made contact with the rickety boat. It creaked at her light touch. She swallowed down her bile and gripped the edges like there was no tomorrow. Her brother facepalmed before leading Aurora to his light blue washtub.

"Wow. That water must be cold. You're freezing me Aurora." The mage shivered as he pulled her into the tiny tub. Her suit created a puddle around where she sat.

"I'm sorry." She scooted as far away as she could in the confined space.

"Do you need to go back and dry off? You might get sick if you leave those clothes on wet." Colette suggested from her boat.

"Nah, I'm fine. Let's go." The woman pointed forward. Everyone cut the ropes keeping their boats docked; some more reluctant than others. And off they went.

"So much for that other two-hundred gald tub." Aurora sighed.

"Um... Is seawater _suppposed_ to come in through the bottom?" Lloyd asked wearily.

"Can't tell. Ours was full with it to begin with." Geins laughed. Aurora frowned.

"Oops."

"Auuuuuugh..." Raine was doubled over her washtub with nausea.

"Professor?" Colette patted her on the back. "Are you okay?" The older woman shook her head gently.

"We're here." Kratos announced. Sure enough, everyone's tubs bounced off the other dock. This seemed to set Raine off. Her fruit salad made a reappearence. The group looked away from the upchucking teacher and went on to the gyeser. Bodies were now pressed against the railing in search for the spiritua statue.

"Guys! I found it! Way... over... there..." Lloyd's eyebrows scrunched up. His friend walked up behind him to see what the commotion was about.

He blinked in disbelief.

"How does someone 'drop' something on the other side of the freakin gyeser!" He complained. "What? Did he _swim_ it or something?"

"Question is, how do we retrieve it." Aurora concluded.

"Guess it's icicle time. Lloyd, you ready?" The mage pulled out his kendama.

"Ready."

"Okay then. Do what I tell you to and you'll be fine. My ice will probably last thirty seconds before it melts again. Ready... set... ICICLE!" He threw his fist in the air and froze over the hot water with a thick layer of ice. "Go Lloyd go!" He started barking ordrers to the poor teen. His feet could be heard scuffling around the frozen pool.

"Sounds like he's having fun." Aurora motioned to coach Genis. Colette giggled.

"I've always wanted to go ice skating." The blonde smiled at her friends.

"Ice skating?" The woman asked. "Hm... Interesting. I'll have to find a place to do it sometime."

The Chosen beamed at the woman and glanced around the area. She gasped when her eyes met a familiar sight. The mercenary we all know and love turned to the girl.

"Is there something wrong Chosen?" He asked.

"It's just, that sign looks familiar." She pointed to a bulletien board. Kratos nodded. He was grateful she had spotted it the first time so they didn't have to ride back again. The washtubs weren't exactly one of the high points in the regeneration journey.

Lloyd hopped to safety just as the gyeser erupted and shattered the ice sheet into a million tiny peices. Raine had finished heaving up breakfast and found the group.

"Mission accomplished." Lloyd punched his fist in the air.

"Yeah!" Genis mimicked his friends victory pose.

"That was great Lloyd. You were so fast going across that ice!" Colette beamed at the boy.

Aurora chuckled. "I bet it was a sight to behold."

"Hey!" The klutzy blonde put her hands together. "I think I saw something behind that sign over there. Let's go take a look." She skipped along on her way and somehow managed to fall up the stairs. Genis facepalmed.

"It tkes a true klutz to trip _up_ the stairs." He commented.

"Poor Colette. She'll end up killing me one day with her klutziness." Aurora shook her head. The boys laughed.

The group had gathered around a tiny space behind the sign. She'd found an oracle stone. Lloyd about dropped the Spiritua Statue.

"You mean I didn't need to do that after all!" He freaked out. Aurora snickered at his tone of disappointment.

"Lloyd," Raine sighed at the boy's tendency to jump to conclusions. "We still have more seals to break after this, remember?"

"Oh, right." Lloyd gripped the statue tighter.

* * *

As soon as she passed through the threshold, a familiar sensation washed over Aurora. She felt like she was... at home. Her real home. The one destroyed three years ago. Her footsteps ceased along with Kratos and Lloyd's.

"What's the hold up?" The teen asked.

"It seems the assassin didn't follow us in here." Kratos mused.

"Assassin?"

"Sheena?" Aurora recived skeptical looks from her companions. "Um, ah, assasssin? Hehe..." She offered. The mercenary ran his fingers through his hair.

"You didn't see the assassin stalking us? You both need to be more observant on this trip. That is, assuming you want to live. Don't make a foolish mistake." He said. The younest swordsman glared.

"Well sorry I can't be mister perfect like you!" He replied sarcastically. Aurora chuckled, the man frowned.

"I've made a mistake once." He continued. "A grave one."

"Really?" Aurora asked. "What happened?"

"Nothing. I've already said too much." He turned away.

"Excuse me?" She glared. The mercenary stopped in his tracks. "You are always pressing me for answers, but you won't answer any of mine?" She inquired. "I hardly see how that's fair." He turned to face her.

"You do not answer any of my inquiries, do you?" He asked.

"I've answered two."

"Those were your choices." He said.

"What?" She hissed. "It wasn't my choice. You were going to kick me out if I didn't answer, so don't say anything about it being _my_ choice."

"It was. You could choose to either stay, or go. And you chose stay." He anwered simply. Aurora's face was now blood red. Her knuckles had turned white since she was gripping her sword tightly. She marched forward to where Kratos blocked the way.

"Move." She growled. He obliged and took a step to the side. She trudged past and mumbled unintelligible things under her breath. Lloyd stared after her.

"Boy, you sure do know how to piss people off." He commented. The man shrugged and continued further into the seal.

When the sword-wielders caught up with the rest, Colette was bouncing up and down with exitment. "Look! Look!" She had the sorcerers ring on. "It shoots water now! See?" She squirted Lloyd with a blast of water.

"So... It's a water squirter... That's really... weak." Lloyd's face twisted into disppointment. Aurora frowned.

"Uh, Lloyd. Remember back at the fire seal and Aurora wiped out that monster with a spell. Yeah. That was water based." Genis educated him. The teen paled.

"Oops. Sorry." He squeaked.

They walked a little ways into the temple before hitting their first obstacle. There were two doors on either side of a silver measuring scale. The left one had a picture of a snke on it, and the other had a picture of a unicorn. The scale had a pot sitting on either side with buttons underneath them. The scale had some engraving on the base, but Lloyd paid no heed.

"Colette! Fill this pot with water." He pointed to the left one. She nodded and proceeded to squirt some water into the urn. It was weighed down enough that it pressed the button below. The left door began to slide open. "Yeah! We did it!" He gave the blonde a high five.

_Sssshhhhtttthhhh..._

"Um, anyone else hear that?" Genis asked.

"It sounds like..." Raine began. "...Snakes. They all looked down to see that the floor had flooded with purple snakes of every size.

"Eep!" Raine froze as one slithered up her pant leg. "Help." She barely whispered. A sword lashed out and beheaded the serphent before it could do any damage.

"Wrong door Lloyd." Kratos began to hack away at the floor of snakes. Lloyd, Colette, and Aurora joined in shrortly after and dealt with them quickly.

"Okay... next door then."

"Wait." Raine stopped him. "There's some writing on the scale. It's in angelic so Colette will have to read it."

The angel hopped over to the elaborate scale and began. "'I am the essence of wisdom and the spirit of water. Thou who knows my name shall pass through unharmed.'"

"Sounds like a riddle." Genis said.

"Not quite." Aurora muttered. Everyone turned to her. "The spirit of water right. We just have to know her name. It shouldn't be hard to figure out the rest."

"Well," Raine thought for a moment. "The summon spirt of water was named Undine, but the art of summoning was lost long ago."

"Is there anything that ryhmes with Undine? Starts with the same letter as Undine?" The blue clad woman asked.

"Hey!" Genis snapped his fingers. "I've got it. It's simple. Just open the doors that have the pictures with the first letter of each spelling out Undine!"

"Genis, you're a genuis!" Lloyd punched his shoulder.

"Thanks." The small boy puffed out his chest. They went on spelling out Undine's name until they finally go to E. This chamber held four doors with two different scales. From left to right it was pictured scorpions, treasure chest, praying mantis, eel.

"You know..." Lloyd started. "When we opened the snake door, snakes came out. So what would happen if we open the treasure chest door?"

Raine's eyes lit up. "Lloyd! How very observant of you! This will go in my journal!"

"I can tell Lloyd rarely ever has a stroke of genuis." Aurora whispered to Genis.

"About once very two years." He replied. She chuckled.

Colette walked up to one of the scales and opened the treasure chest door. Sure enough, a tresure chest was inside it. Lloyd whooped and hollered before flipping it open to find...

Teeth.

"Ah!" He stumbled backwards. "Possesed chest." He pointed an accusing finger towards the now docile chest. His friends looked at him like they would a lunatic.

"No silly. Look." Colette opened the chest, reached her hand in, and pulled out a new pair of chakrams and a circlet. "Ooh! Pretty!" She equiped her newfound equipment.

Raine raised a suspicious eyebrow. "Did you drink more potion Lloyd?" She asked.

"N-No! I swear.!" He put his hands up in a defensive gesture.

"If you say so." Aurora patted his head. He glanced sidways at her before they moved on.

Once the group arrived at the seal, a flash of blue light brought forth a giant mermaid.

"A mermaid?" Lloyd scoffed.

"Ahahaha!" Genis laughed.

_SWOOSH!_

The creature hit them both with spread.

"Mermaid with a kick." Aurora commented and charged forward. It noticed her quickly enough and parried her swing with ease. Kratos was up next. He got a few hits in, but not many.

"Genis! Use Thunder!" He ordered. The mage nodded and began to chant. The three sword-fighters and Colette protected him while he gathered up the nessecary mana to cast a decent spell.

"Thunder!" He called. A shaft of purple lightening pierced the mermaid's scaly green skin and zapped some of the moxy out of it. It was stunned for a moment, giving the perfect opportunity for the melee fighters to take a beating to it. As it started to regain its composure, they all filed back towards Genis again. The creature didn't wait to be hit this time. It's sword came down and created a gash in Lloyd's leg.

"Lloyd!" Colette and Kratos called out. Aurora sprinted over to the teen and grabbed that miricle gel out of a secret pocket in her pack.

"B-But this is your's. And it's a miracle gel!" He protested. She ignored him and shoved the medical supplies in his lap.

"And you need it." She commented before returning to the fray. It was a race against time now. The mermaid would either wipe them out with a spread, or Genis would pierce it all the way through with another lightening. Both the spellcaster's glyphs were getting stronger by the second. Foamy water started to bubble under the groups feet.

"LIGHTENING!" Genis finished chanting and finished off the monster with a well placed lightening attack.

"Way to go Genis." Aurora ruffled his hair.

"That's my brother. Now come here so I can heal you." Raine ordered.

Genis sighed. "Yes, Raine, I'm coming."

Kratos was tending to Lloyd while Aurora walked Colette to the altar. After praying, Remiel descended from 'heaven' to bless the Chosen. After that, he was kind enough to warp the group back to the entrance. This time Colette tripped down the stairs.

"Colette!" Lloyd wemt after her, but ended up tripping himself due to the cut leg. Their group sighed in unison.

"Camp time!" Genis called and started to build a campfire.

* * *

They all sat around the campfire and ate some of Genis's shrimp and fried rice. It was great, as always, and filled everyone's stomachs. Eyelids were drooping and snores echoed through the campsite. Colette went to sleep for the last time that night. Tomorrow the transformation would make its permanent effect. The only two left up were Kratos and Aurora, who refused to go to sleep. The mercenary knew fighting with her was useless, so instead, he tried for answers.

"Care to explain your behavior this morning?" He asked.

"No." She replied bluntly. He glared, not expecting this answer.

"Think again." He said.

"Fine..." She put a hand to her chin. "... It's still a no. Sorry."

"If you're not going to tell me then at least get some sleep. You'll need it."

"I can't..."

"Why?"

"I just can't that's why!"

"Do you have nightmares? Is that it? Are you going to let something as childish as nightmares keep you from sleep?"

She snarled at him. "I'd like to see _you_ deal with them." She muttered. "Tsere's nothing _childish_ about it you freaking, insensitive... creature." She got up and tried to walk away quickly. He stood up also and grabbed her wrists.

"What are you doing?"

"Making my choice." She stated.

"And that would be?..."

"Stay as far away from you as I can get while I'm on this journey." She jerked her arm back. "Don't touch me." She spat in his face. He glared but let her go.

"Goodnight." He muttered.

She just walked towards the dock, leving him in the dust.

_This isn't normal. What happened to her to make her this way?_

* * *

PMS-y Me: I really hope you guys liked this chapter 'cause it was freakin hard to write. I'm tired as all get out. I _forced_ myself to finish it for you guys so pwease weview! (Puppy dog eyes.) Pweaty pwease! With cherries on top of your ice cream! Cookies for the readers! Yay sugar! (I need some.)

Lloyd: No you don't! Go to bed! I'm tired!

PMS-y Me: That was in a thought bubble idiot. You weren't supposed to respond to it!

Logical Me: Go to bed or you won't be able to update tomorrow.

PMS-y Me: Fine. (yawn.) G'night.


	15. Chapter 14

Me: I'm so sorry... WAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!! T.T

Genis: *sigh* Shut up!

Me: AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!

Lloyd: O.o

Me: AAAAAAAAAAHHHHH!!!

Genis: *whispers to Lloyd* I think she's really upset...

Me: *sobs uncontrollably*

Lloyd: ... Ya think?

Me: I'm sooooooo sorry guys! I've just been well... unmotivated-

Genis: coughspoiledbratcough

Me: *lip quivers* Yes, yes I have! WAH!

Lloyd: O.O She agreed to something we said?

Genis: Has she ...stopped yet...?

Lloyd: Don't think so.

Me: Seriously... I cried of guilt today. I haven't updated 'cause I only got three reviews after three days! I told myself I would keep going if only ONE person kept liking it. And here I go, stalling because I had only three people review this time. ShadowVDP, Kawaii Gin Kitti, and silk345 all get triple helpings of the dessert of their choice for the three days I've left them fictionless. I-I'm so sorry...

Lloyd: Oh boy.

Genis: *Slaps the back of my head* Stop that! If you keep crying every two minutes, you'll never get the story posted!

Me: *Sniff* You're right. Say what, I'll make a deal. If five reviews are submitted the day after a chapter is posted... I'll update the next day. If I don't, I'll update the day after, and I can only update on Sunday through Thursday nights! Remember, I've allowed anonymus reviews so all you non-fanfiction . net members, review away if you want me to continue. Flames are counted as a review. Speaking of fanfiction . net, they won't allow links! Big meanies. So, the website I was on the other day was called ( failblog . org ) Ah, the mistakes we humans make... On the bright side, I GOTS CONTACTS! YEAH! NO MORE GLASSES! XD Plus, a picture of Aurora is already in the process of being made by my loyal reviewer AnimeAngel809. I really hope its done soon. I've got drafts, (Waves them tauntingly in the air) but you don't get to see them! (snatches them back) XD They're all mine! You guys can have the final copy! Or, you could make a picture of Aurora yourself! And, I would really like a picture of the pairing LloydxPotion, also implied by AnimeAngel809. Perferably in chibi form. Another helping of dessert will come your way. (I could be the soul cause of obesity ...hehe...) So, here goes. I hope I don't disappiont. This begins exaclty where the last one left off. (I didn't write the rest 'cause I was tired.) So... Lights! Camera! FICTION!

* * *

Chapter 14: Dinner Disasters.

Aurora sat on the edge of the dock, unwilling to let her body rest. The pale moon matched her skin as it was reflected off the ocean, causing her to glow with a dim aura of light. Her head hung as if she were staring into the crystaline waters. _Plip._ A tear found its way down her frowning countenance and into the salty water. She knew she could not _never_ sleep. She'd die. Then again, avoiding those nightmares might be worth the suicide. Finding no resolve, she summoned her sliver harp. I shone as bright as the moon itself. Her hands ran skillfully over the dragon's form, making sure she was holding it in the correct posistion. Her small, delicate fingers plucked quietly at the strings and filled the serene atmosphere with a sweet melody. It was a lullaby her "mother" had taught her. Most of the villagers in her hometown played. The walls would often echo the instruments soft voices' through the cave. It was like the city itself was singing. Oh, how much she missed home.

_Oh Maria, I'm so sorry. I've turned out to be the worst woman, and the worst daughter ever alive. If you were here to see me, you'd probably reject me as your adoptive child. I'm sorry I've failed your expectations. I'm sorry for being a poor representative for our home. I'm sorry for letting myself be used. I'm sorry I will never find a suitable husband. I'm sorry I couldn't bear your grandchild. I'm sorry that I failed to protect you from those horrible creatures. Please, please. I just want to go home. To that place you said all of us went when we died. Where the river of time flows endlessly and the tree of life spreads its roots beyond the horizon. Where there's no pain, no touture, no suffering. That one place I can't bring myself to go to. Please. Tell the goddess I want to go home. Maybe I can finally see you again... Please..._

_Please..._

"Please..." She whispered as the salty taste of tears filled her mouth. She had kept playing the same tune over and over without having to think about it. Each time it got louder. Each please, it became more meaningless...

"Please..." She breathed one last time before hugging the memento of her home, and dissmissing it back into her manastream. Her bottom lip quivered slightly. More and more tears started to run down her face. No one was there for her. No one was there to wipe away the tears, to wipe away the pain, to wipe away the nightmares. No one to protect or to love her. No one cared.

No one.

The only thing she wanted most in the world, was to feel her mother's embrace one last time. Not the feeble, unstable, light hug she gave her before she died in cold blood, no. The one where she was a little girl again, and was picked up off the floor in a bonecrushing hug only a mother could deliver. The one that made her feel safe no matter what.

"Please." She repeated at little more loudly. "Please goddess, I want my mom again. Please. Just once. Once more. I miss," She sobbed inbetween each section. "I miss," Streams reddened her cheeks. "I miss... mommy." The child in her was trying to fight back the rational side. It was winning. Aurora would do anything to reverse the flow of time, back to when she was just a girl. When everything was right in the world. The _plip _sounds became more rapid. Her body made hiccuping movemnets, but no sounds of hysterics came from her. Only a soft whimpereing from the back of her throat. Learining to cry quietly was a skill she had to learn, or otherwise, two years ago, beatings would come.

Kratos sat in front of the campfire, staring into the orange flames with emotionless, wine red eyes. His mind was trying to decide wether to go after the girl he'd just upset, or let her filter it out herself.

Go.

No.

Go.

No.

Go...

...Go.

He sighed and stood up without much effort. His feet moved silently across the cobble stone path that wound down the small hill to the dock. He figured it wouldn't kill to leave the group for five minutes. They were on a miniscule island for goddess sakes! Why'd they need a nightwatch? Then again... there was an assassin. He looked over his shoulder at he snoring group. They'll be fine... When he rounded the last corner, what he saw almost made him stagger backwards.

Aurora was gripping her sword so tightly, her knuckles went paper white from lack of blood flow. The edge of the long blade was a few inches from her wrist, but never seemed to move. He ran towards her and ripped the sword from her grip.

"I suggest you leave the group before doing that. The kids would be... less likely to continue should you take your life." His hand dropped the blade a few inches from her. His eyes were cold, despire their firey color. Her head whipped around. Kratos frowned slightly. Hot tears decorated her pale face which made the red streaks they created more apparent. "May I ask what possesed you do commit such an act?"

She snarled at him. "And you care why?"

He didn't answer.

"I knew it..."

"Hmm?"

"You just want to make sure I was serious so you could leave me behind."

"Why do you always insist that I want to banish you? I do not make the desicions, the Chosen does. And she seems clearly fond of you. I doubt that you will be leaving our presence anytime in the near future." He crossed his arms.

"Then, why else would you care?" She frowned. The tears had stopped flowing, leaving dry, stuck together strands of hair in her face and red lines down her cheeks. Her teeth clenched shut as she swallowed some of her spit.

"Can I not ask why you were planning on killing yourself? That isn't normal." He answered.

...

She curled up and laid her forehead on her knees.

"Leave me alone..." She mumbled.

"And if I shouldn't?

"Leave... me... alone." Her tone was drawn out and stronger this time. He facepalmed and continued to run his fingers through his spiky hair.

"Fine." He turned swiftly and left the small, fragile, already broken girl to mourn to herself.

* * *

"Ugh." Raine grunted and pushed herself up into sitting posistion. She had gone to bed early the night before. Surveying the camp, she noticed Kratos and Aurora were gone. The bile in her stomach rose in anger. He couldn't find her interesting... could he? He was logical, and rational, and levelheaded, and... and... and she was... childish and crippled. And herself, she was smart and elegant and beautiful. Granted, a half-elf, but still. Kratos didn't seem like the type to jusdge people based on race. As said mercenary stepped into view, her mind snapped back to reality.

"Where's Aurora?" She tried to ask without arousing suspicion.

"Out on the dock." He answered simply, taking his post beside the fire.

"And no one was watching the camp?" She raised and eyebrow accusingly.

"No. I suppose not." He shrugged lightly. Raine's face twisted in confusion. "The island isn't even a mile long Raine. I'm sure you were in no danger."

Shivers ran down her spine as he spoke her name. Shaking her head, she laid back down on her sleeping bag and tried to drift off to sleep once more.

* * *

Making sure not litter, everyone scouted the area for any trash they may have left in the vacation spot. A few tourists started to gather in front of the railings to watch the gyesers periodic eruptions of boiling hot water. Our heroes took one last look and left for the washtubs.

"Aurora rides with me today." Lloyd announced. Genis gasped and faced his friend.

"She can't ride with you. There's not enough room."

"Gee thanks. You sure know how to make a woman feel good about herself." The prize rolled her eyes. Midget mage (I couldn't help myself.) blushed and tried to accomadate for his outburst.

"I mean. Lloyd takes up most of the space. Hehe..." His thumbs twiddled innocently.

"I still say she rides with me." The teen grabbed the woman's wrist and jerked her towards him.

"No... she rides back with me." Genis grabbed her other wrist.

"Me." Lloyd pulled her towards his tub.

"No." Genis dragged her to his tub.

"Nu-uh." Back.

"Hey!" Forth.

"No way!" Back.

"Um... what are you doing?" Forth.

"Give it, midget." Back.

"Can it stupid." Forth.

"That didn't ryhme." Back.

"Who said it had to?" Forth.

"BREAKFASTISCOMINGBACKUP!" Aurora screamed.

They didn't care.

"She's riding with me." Lloyd jerked her wrist towards him.

Bad mistake.

"Augh!" Aurora coughed up her breakfast all over the swordsman. Tears stung her eyes.

"Ah! Ick!" He jumped back from the sick woman and ended up falling off the dock. The silver head was laughing his but off along with Colette. The other two adults were just pissed off at how long it took to leave. The sickly pale woman shook at having regurgitated her last meal.

"H-How about I ride with Colette." She asked/pleaded.

"That's okay. Genis and Lloyd can ride with you." She smiled at her resoltuion. Aurora sighed and slumped over.

"If you are going to be children about it, Aurora can ride with me." Kratos suggested.

"What?!" Everyone except Colette asked. The woman paled to a paler pale than she was and quickly grabbed Genis's wrist.

"I'll ride with Genis." She quickly said.

"Yes!"

"No!" Lloyd said collapsing onto the dock. Everyone recoiled from him.

"Ugh!" Raine shivered in horror.

"Um..." Colette held her nose daintily.

"Dude..." Genis cringed.

Kratos sighed and rubbed his temples.

Aurora didn't notice. Her nostrils burned from stomach acid.

"Goddess Lloyd! You smell like rotten fish and throw up." Genis's nose wrinkled in disgust.

"Gee. Wonder why?" He glared.

"Sorry." The girl panted on her knees. Dry heaves were following up the original and her vision was blurry. Her eyes blinked furiously to clear her head. The soaked and rather smelly teen groaned.

"It's okay." He mumbled.

"On second thought," Genis started. "I think Aurora should ride with Lloyd. I don't think they would mind each other's company."

The rest shook their heads unenthusiastically and proceeded to climb into the respective tubs.

"I think we should stay away from the washtubs..." Colette thought outloud. "Bad things happen around them."

Genis turned around in his boat to face the blonde. "Amen sister."

* * *

They were finally on the road to the HoS to relay their retrieval to the priests. The clean part of the group walked far ahead of the two sword-wielders. Aurora looked to the teen.

"At least you got to ride with me." She chuckled.

"Ugh. Don't remind me..."

As soon as they walked through the small wooden gate, peopled made sure to give them a wide berth. A very... wide berth. And it still wasn't sufficient. Just their presence could send all the holy essence running for the hills. Both of the misfits face's reddened.

"Chosen! Chosen!" Neil was gaining up on the group. He stopped immedeatly after setting foot within a twenty foot radius of them. "Uh..."

"Don't ask." Aurora stated. The man nodded wearily, but continued.

"Neil has sent me to ask you for help."

You could see the viens pop in everyone's forehead.

"You have- a freakin- milita! Are they just there for decoration?" Genis ranted.

"Honestly." Raine began. "How could an army of armor wearing spearmen not complete a task a group of six could?"

Neil chuckled nervously. "H-He just thought that you might want to know... A girl you know is being held there."

"Who?" Lloyd asked. The message man inched away from him before answering.

"Chocolat."

Colette gasped. "Chocolat! Oh Raine! We have to go find her. Please?" She puppy-dog faced her. Raine frowned slightly, but agreed to her demand.

"Fine. Where is this ranch?" The orange clad teacher asked.

"By the Thoda Gyeser I believe."

...

"What?" He took a step back from the people glaring viciously at him.

"You coulda told us sooner!" Lloyd glared.

"Ugh! We have to walk all the way back there... With these two... Oh joy." Genis motioned to the funky smelling duo.

"It wouldn't be wise to leave now. I suggest we rest here for the night, let Aurora and Lloyd get cleaned up, and head for the ranch at dawn." Kratos spoke up. Murmurs of agreement resonated throughout the group. Niel nodded.

"Good. Then I shall inform Dorr of your desicion at once." He bowed quickly, then scurried off to the two-faced, backstabbing, liar known as Govener General Dorr. Or jerkface for short.

They rented three rooms. One for Colette, one for Raine and Genis, and one for Lloyd and Kratos. Aurora had to sleep outside since she no longer had any money. Lloyd had ordered a normal, bath taking kind of tub to wash up in. Aurora settled for ten mint leaves shoved up her throat. A couple of hours after they got settled in,

"Food's ready!" Raine called to her compaions. The children moaned in agony at the thought of eating the Professor's 'cooking'. Everyone gathered around the reeking campfire. Genis leaned over to his friend and whispered.

"Who let Raine near the cooking supplies?" He asked.

Lloyd shrugged. "Man," He shuddered. "It smells worse than I did."

"I wouldn't go that far." Genis smirked. Lloyd just glared sideways at him. He was too tired to rebel. Getting thrown up on takes a lot out of you. A lot meaning, your breakfast. Raine went around in a circle handing out bowls of what could only be described as slop. It was gray, mushy, and sometimes moved.

"Uh, is it supposed to move like that?" Genis poked it with his fork. It hissed at him, and he quickly used some 'magic' to make it disappear. Lloyd looked over to his friend and got the same idea. He scooped his slop off for Noishe to eat. Not even the protazoan would ingest it, so the teen had to quickly cover it up with some dirt. Poor Colette couldn't taste what the heck it was she was eating since the angel tranformation process had taken that away. Kratos flat out refused dinner. Aurora had never tasted Raine's cooking, but from the sounds it was making, she was sure it wasn't pleasant to eat. Everyone else had resorted to sipping out of their water glasses for nutrition. Th oblivious swordswoman tentatively scooped some of the living gray matter up with her fork and brought it to her mouth. Everyone watched in amazement as she forced the slimy substance down her throat. Her face turned a sickly green. Her hand quickly searched for her glass of water and brought it immedeatily to her lips.

...

"Aurora... That's Kratos's cup..." Colette squeaked.

"What!?!" Aurora spit it out at once, getting it all over Genis. He groaned in frustration as his friend laughed. Justice had been served as far as he was concerned. Aurora had dropped the cup though, and it landed on Lloyd's pants. The mage pointed to him and laughed at his stain. Yeah, that was so much more embarassing than his stain. The girl who dropped it was still gagging, trying to cough up what littled she swallowed. Raine turned red in the face. All of this over her cooking? Colette leaned over Lloyd, trying to cheer him up, and Kratos just watched as the chaos ensued.

When it all calmed down, everyone climbed into their beds (or ground...) and went to lala land for the night. Aurora was laying out behind the HoS. A set of familiar footsteps came around the corner. Suddenly, a big bunch of fur was under her and sof bushy tail was around her waist. She smiled brightly and patted Noishe's tail.

"Hi boy!" She cooed. His teal and white tail twitched and a he gave her a big, fat, lick on the side of her face. She giggled like a child and curled up in his fur. "Thanks." She patted his stomach. "You're much better than a blanket.

"Whine."

"Aw. It's okay. You can do more than keep me warm."

"Whine."

"Yes you can. You can... warn us about monsters. Yeah!"

"(Blink)"

"So you run away. It's still a sign." She shook her head. "I'm starting to talk to the animals. Time to shut up."

"Snort."

"Goodnight Noishe."

The protozan curled around her tighter and put its giant head between its paws.

"At least one of us can get some sleep." She whispered and stroked one of his large ears. It twitched a littled before going flat against his head. A soft whine came from the creature. She sighed. "Get some sleep." The 'dog' sighed in frustration and drifted off to sleep. Aurora let her head fall back. "Stars eh? Wonder if Maria's up there with them..." She smiled wistfully.

"Hi mommy..."

* * *

Me: Well, the guilt is gone now! I hope you enjoyed. And for that long delay, EVERYBODY gets ice cream plus a cookie!

Genis: You're so backwards.

Me: Why do you say that?

Genis: You were listening to hamster-dance and carameldancen while writing the first part of this fic, and you cried. Then, while writing the wshtub part, you listened to how to save a life... and laughed...

Me: XD Soooooooooooooooooo backwards!

Lloyd: Please get me outta here... and some potion...

Me:Hm...

Lloyd: What.

Me: Nothing.

Genis: -.-' Idiot. You wouldn't have typed hm... if it was nothing.

Me: I've just wanted more visits to my profile. I hoped that you-tube thing would help, but I guess not...

Genis: Maybe it's 'cause you haven't told anybody.

Me: ... Oh. ////


	16. Chapter 15

(A/N : I've been writing this chapter for three days. I'v re-written the intro like, twice. I don't want to again. And if I did, my coz would lose his two or three lines of fame.)

Me: Ha! Nice ShadowVDP. That's one way to get five reviews. Not exactly how I meant it though, and you let everyone else off the hook! Oh well. I'm sorry I didn't write right away, but if I had written this chapter the other night, I would've been banned from the computer. You wouldn't want that now would you. I'm able to update tonight because I'm at my grandparents house with my cousin. Say hi coz!

Cousin: Hey... (Flips hair and goes back to laptop.)

Readers: Hi cousin.

Cousin: (Ignores readers and flips out over not finding a format.)

Me: ...Okay... he's busy making a roblox clan homepage. Ice cream goes to both ShadowVDP, Gamer Girl, and silk345. Enjoy guys! To answer Gamer Girl's question, no, I don't have one of those stories. I haven't played ToS2 and frankly, have no desire to. Especially since I've heard there's no Kratos in it. How dare Namco! (If he is, and I was misinformed, let me know and I'll get on it right away.) I'm also sorry about spelling errors. When you're up at 4:00 in the morning and forcing yourself to stay awake just to _finish_ the chapter, you don't feel like going back and editing. I'm really sorry. I try my best.

Lloyd and Cousin: Your best is crappy.

Me: Hey! :( I might go back and edit the whole fic one day... maybe... that's gonna be a lot of work. And about the mommy thing, I just wanted to capture Aurora's longing for years past. Plus, she also stated that she was a child at heart sometime earlier. At least in her mind she did. Just thought it would be touching. Apparently it wasn't...

Lloyd: ... That's it?

Me: Mm... Yeah. Pretty much.

Lloyd: Okay...

Me: On with the fic.

* * *

Chapter 15: Very Long Chapter That Cannot Be Named After One Specific Thing Because Too Many Things Happen But I Should've Just Picked A Title 'Cause Now This Is A Very Long Title, Then Again, The Story Is Long So It Kinda Fits... Whatever, Just Read The Story Already!

After another sleepless night, Aurora stretched her muscles. They had become numb since they'done pretty much nothing for the whole night. She shakily got up and patted Noishe on the head.

"Thanks boy." Her nails scratched behind his ears as his tail beat the dirt. Her lips curved into a slight smile.

When she rounded the corner, Kratos walked out of the HoS. His eyes scanned over her, noting the dark, purple circles starting to form under her bandanna. He gave her a questioning look, but didn't speak. Her feet continued to drag across the path to the steps where she sat down. She ran her fingers through her long brown locks and sighed. Sleep deprivation was catching up. Bad timing. The group was headed for the ranch today.

_Wake up Aurora! C'mon. This was your chioce, deal with it._

Her head shook violently before taking on an alert state. The points on her ears perked up and her aching feet were forced to carry her. A forced smile appeared on her lips.

"You need to get more sleep." The man made his presence know. The girl jumped and faced him. "If you fall asleep on this journey, we will leave you behind."

"I thought you said the Colette made the desicions?" Her eyebrows lowered to form an eyeless glare.

"Yes, and sometimes she needs a little push in the right direction."

"Right direction? And that would be,"

"What's best for the journey." He finished. Her nose scrunched up.

"Why are you in such a hurry to get this over with?"

"I am a mercenary, and here on a job. The faster this is finished, the faster I can recieve my pay." The tone in his voice was unenthusiastic.

Aurora's brow twitched. "She's only a child. You shouldn't push her too far."

"It is her duty."

"Says who?"

"Says Martel..." His voice trailed off. The thoughts of his lost friend entered his mind as well as his demented pupil.

"Then I don't agree with this "Martel"." The girl pulled him out of his reverie.

"Hmph." He frowned. "The Chosen is meant to serve Martel." His tongue always seemed ot swell when he spoke of her in a godly form. She was a simple person who wanted a better world. Just like everone else. It would make her unhappy to see what had become of her brother, image, and the world she loved. "I suggest you leave those comments unspoken when in front of others." She glared fiercely at him before heading towards the gate. He sighed and followed her. Her back was resting against the wooden wall.

"Leave." She commanded. He ignored her.

"What exactly is keeping you from a decent night's rest?" He asked.

"That's my business." She growled.

"One day you are going to make it everyone's business. Falling off your guard may get someone killed."

"..." She chewed on her bottom lip. "Go away."

"Apparently you can not be left unattended, less you commit suicide."

"Sadly, I've never been able to complete it." She mumbled.

He gave her a unapproving look."If you are going to be like this, then maybe I should take incentive and force you to leave."

"It isn't your desicion to make."

"It is my job to make sure this journey is completed. If that means taking you out of the equation, then so be it."

The deppresed girl swallowd back tears. Maybe he was right. Maybe she wasn't fit to be on this journey. Her form took itself from the wall and made a sharp turn to the right, leading her out of the gate. She let her sack drop from her arm and undid her sword' sheath so that it fell to the ground.

"What are you planning to do?" The man asked her reteating figure.

"Commiting suicide. And this time, it will work." She never stopped. He glared and followed her.

"Go back."

"No."

"Now." Her fists clenched at her sides.

"How are you planning to die? You have no blade to do it with."

"Hunger, dehydration, sleep deprivation, ravenous monsters, natural disasters, bandits, anything that could possibly happen." She shrugged. Her feet had carried her all the way to a patch of woods beside the HoS. Fists clenched at her sides. "Leave." She stated.

He didn't cease his footsteps.

"..." Her lip started to curl up in agitation. "I said, leave."

"..."

He followed her all the way to a clearing. She stopped and hunched up her shoulder. "Leave." She snarled through her clenched teeth.

"You need to finish what you started." He narrowed his eyes.

"You don't own me..." Her muscles were so tight she was shaking in her place.

"This is a cowardly act. You will come back and act like a responsible adult." He grabbed her wrist and tugged it backwards.

She snapped.

"No!" Her hand tried to slip through his grip. "Let go!"

"Aurora?"

"I don't want to be yours anymore! Let go!" She spun around giving Kratos a good look at her wild countenance. The once lovely features, marred only by the abscence of her eyes, were now twisted into an expression of pure fear. The hand that had been pressed against her side was now gripping her captured arm in a death grip, trying to pull away from the mercenary. Tears of panic started to dampen her bandanna. The man raised an eyebrow at her.

"Aurora!" He barked.

"Nyah! Let go Ryudo!" The pulls became more fierce and her pale cheeks were painted a blood red.

"Ryudo?" Kratos mused. Wasn't that the name of the man in Palmacoasta? His? What? "Aurora." He grabbed her shoulders so that she was at arms length away. After a few minutes, her struggles became less violent and her mind seemed to click back into reality, but the shakes were still there.

"Huh?" She asked.

"What is the meaning of these outbursts?"

Aurora shook her head slowly. "L-Let go."

"..."

"I won't run. I'll go back."

The man looked at her questioningly and reluctantly let go of her shoulders. Her hands flew up to them immediately and tried to ease the pain his grip had induced. Her feet drug along the dirt path back to the HoS.

"Where are you going?"

"Back to the House of Salvation." Each step seemed to be longer than the last.

"Explain your actions." He demanded.

"No."

"Yes."

"No. That's my choice. Live with it." The girl stalked off.

Kratos's eye twitched in aggrivation. He hated to admit it, but he normally got what he wanted. And when they refused him, it wasn't pretty. Of course, it was usually new Desian Recruits and human escapees. He didn't know what was holding him back. It would've been so easy for him to end her life on many occasions without causing suspicion. What was it? Curiosity? He didn't know, but that's what he told himself.

* * *

The group packed up without much fanfare that morning. Traveling back the way you came isn't exactly exiting. The feeling of depression was almost palpable. Genis yawned and blinked a few times. Lloyd stretched, managing to knock the mage over with the slightest touch. He didn't move after hitting the ground.

"Genis?" The teen asked drowsily. "Are you okay?" He was too lazy to bend down so he kicked him gently. His friend snorted and rolled over.

"Don't takes away Mistew Chicken Waine... No expewimenting..."

"I'm not the Professor Genis. Wake up." Lloyd's head was thrown back, eyes closed, and mouth agape. Colette walked over to him.

"Hi. Aren't you guys... excite...ted..." Her head fell on the swordsman's shoulder. All in all, they looked ready for a long day of rest.

Too bad.

"C'mon guys. We gotta go." Aurora pushed Lloyd's back.

"Nuagh." He stalked forward in a zombie like fashion causing the snoozing blonde to topple over.

Raine sighed. "Get up! Don't make me get a broom!"

The kids eyes flew open.

"We're up! We're up! No broom please!" Genis jumped up.

"Yes! Please!" Colette begged.

"Ah! No!" Lloyd backed up.

"The... broom?" Aurora asked. "Is there anything I should know about the broom?"

Genis turned his head slowly towards the woman. "You-don't-want-to-know." He said while staring off into the space. Her eyebrows shot up and she took a few steps away from the Professor.

All the way to the ranch, the kids were standing tall, backs staight, chins up, single file. It was unusually quiet. So quiet, Aurora's ears rang from the lack of noise. The tips of her ears went back in unease. She could hear the dragging of a sweat drop trailing down her face.

"Anybody else think it's too quiet."

No answer.

"I'll take that as a no..." Her head hung low for the rest of the trip.

After about half the day was wasted on silence, they finally hit the woods of the human ranch. In an off the road path, a frantic Neil was fighting his conscience. If he told on G.G Dorr, coughjerkfacecough, then Palmacoasta could be attacked. But, if he didn't, Magnius would kill the Chosen and continue to take people to the ranch with no hope of escape. Yes... or no?

Yes.

He jumped out in front of the group. A bad move. Kratos lashed out his sword and had it pressed to his neck. The poor man was wide-eyed with fear and ghostly white. He stared into the mercenary's fierce red eyes, asking for forgiveness. The man sighed and backed of Dorr's subordinate lapdog and sheathed his sword.

"Uh," He swollowed back the bile rising in his throat. "I have a confession to make-"

"Dorr is working with Magnius." Raine finished for him. He gasped.

"Ho-How did you know?"

"It was easy to recognize. With all the resistance in Palmacoasta, Magnius would surely have eliminated it by now, unless..."

"Unless it was beneficial." Aurora put a finger to her bottom lip.

"So Dorr is in league with with Magnius." Kratos stated. (I almost wrote Hollander... Yeah for Crisis Core!)

"Yes. You all need turn and leave right now." He hung his head.

Lloyd twitched violently. "NO!" Everyone turned to him. "No freakin' way. We're here! We're destroying this ranch!" He stormed pass all the rest of them.

"I agree with Lloyd." Genis crossed his arms. "We had to backtrack all the way down here, we're going to do something!" He stuck his nose in the air and followed the hot-tempered swordsman.

"They're right. And Chocolat is here too! We have to save her." Colette smiled at the adults and ran of after her friends.

Aurora shrugged. "Better make sure they don't get into trouble." She smirked. "Like they wouldn't." Her feet sprinted after the kids.

"..."

"This is very agitating." Raine rubbed her temples.

"Their impulsive desicions need to cease." Kratos agreed.

"I'll go with you and help free the prisoners." Neil said. The other two nodded and followed the rest of their group.

* * *

COOKIE! XD (That was my cousin's idea. Go figure...)

* * *

After defeating the Desians guarding the entrance, the children plus Aurora waited rather impatiently for Raine, Kratos, and Neil. They regrouped and discussed a plan.

"We'll all travel together until we find the prisoners, then I will help them escape while you guys go ahead and defeat Magnius." Niel said. Grunts and nods of agreement came from the group as they all geared up to raid the ranch.

A while later...

"... We came all this way and now they tell us we need cards! Ugh!" Lloyd punched the wall.

Raine sighed. "Let's split up. We can cover more ground that way."

"Yes. That would be the most logical choice." Kratos mused.

"I'll stay here. I'm not really used to fighting." Niel announced.

"Okay then," The teen swordsman took his fist from the wall. "Who goes with who?"

Kratos stepped forward. "I think it would be wise to have an adult in each group, and there are three different cards. Each child should pair up with an adult and be assigned a wing to scout.

"Aurora!" All three of the young one's cried together. Kratos and Raine both facepalmed.

"How about Kratos and Raine pick their partner's first." The swordswoman suggested. The mercenary nodded.

"Lloyd." He anounced.

"Aw man..." The teen slumped over. "Later guys." He followed his mentor down the first wing.

"Genis." Raine crossed her arms. "You're coming with me."

"Ugh." The mage frowned in disappointment and walked over to his sister. They took the second wing. Colette beamed at the last one left.

"I guess it's you and me Aurora!"

"Yep. Lead the way." She chuckled and followed the half-skipping half-tripping girl.

* * *

"So..." Lloyd started. "Do you, like, have a_ thing_ for Aurora?"

"A what?" Kratos didn't seem amused.

"You know, like, a _thing._" He tried to clarify. "Or is it the Professor?"

"Lloyd." Kratos sighed. "I do not have a _thing_ for either woman. I suggest you leave those kinds of comments in your head."

"But, you always spend your time with them instead of us." The teen looked at him.

"They are the only other adults on this trip. I suppose I would spend more time with them."

"Well, Aurora is an adult, kinda, and she still hangs out with us."

"Aurora is different."

"How?"

"I think blindness has something to do with it."

The younger swordsman turned red. "Why do people treat her so badly? It's not her fault she's blind! She hasn't done anything wrong... Has she?"

"As far as I know, she is innocent of any crimes." The mercenary cut down a Desian quickly after he answered.

The teen sighed and searched the body for a rectangular metal object. "Got it." He announced unenthusiastically. His teacher nodded in approval and they both left for the card room.

* * *

"Hey sis?" Genis trudged along beside his sister.

"Yes?" Raine looked down at him.

"Eruption!" The mage blew up about three Desians then turned to the Professor. "Have you ever thought that, the Desians might br right?"

"Genis!"

"I mean it." He frowned. "Humans are all the time beating and banning half-elves. Don't you think that this is like payback?"

"Genis." Raine got on her knees and put her hands on his shoulders. "How long have you been keeping this in?"

"Since the first human ranch I saw." He mused. "We've been kicked out of almost every city in Sylvarant. The only way we could stay in Iselia was to lie about our race, and each day it got harder to keep up the facade. And now that Lloyd knows about his mom, he probably wouldn't accept me as a friend anymore. Everyone rejects us but, if we joined the Desians, we'd have people like us to live with." His bottom lip quivered. Raine smiled and hugged her brother.

"Genis, do you think what the Desians did to Marble was right?" She asked. His head jerked up.

"No."

"Well, that's what you're suggesting. If we join the Desians, we'll be just as horrible as the one's who killed Marble. I don't think you want that."

He shook his head.

"Good."

"W-What about Lloyd?" Fear started to leak into his icy blue eyes.

Raine sighed. "I don't know. That's hard to predict. We can deal with that when the time comes okay."

"Okay."

"Oh, and I found the card." She pulled a red, metallic card out of her back pocket. Genis's eyes flew wide open.

"You had it this the whole time! Why didn't you tell me?" He glared.

"It looked like something was bothering you. And I was right." She smiled at her little sibling.

"Stupid intuition..." The mage crossed his arms.

She chuckled. "Let's go." Her hand gripped his and pulled him towards the rendezvous point.

* * *

Aurora cut through a few Desians with Colette right beside her. Blood, swords, and chakrams were flying.

"Aurora?" Colette had finished her side of the room and was now searching for the card.

"Yes?" The woman called back. She was hunched over a body searching for said card.

"Why is it that you don't get along with Raine and Kratos?"

"They're adults. You won't understand until you're older."

"I don't think I will..." The blonde frowned at the corpse she was staring at. Her partner chuckled humorlessly.

"Found it." She droned. The less cheerful Chosen stepped over to look at it. The woman held the slender metal between her thumb and forefinger so the girl could examine it. She nodded and they went to meet up with the others.

* * *

"You got the cards guys?" Lloyd asked.

"Yeah." Genis held up his card.

"Yes." Colette offered her's up. Raine gathered them up and put them in the machine.

"Access, granted." It said robotically. A warp spot appeared in the middle of the room.

"It's go time." The mage said with a blank expression. His feet drug acrosss the floor to the circle. The room was filled with an unusual silence of boredom.

"Whoo..." His red clad friend raised a loose fist lazily in the air and walked into the glow of the teleport.

"Come on guys." A pair of eyelids drooped dangerously close to sleep on a klutzy girl as she tripped into the teleport.

"..." Aurora blinked. "I feel like I've disappointed them..."

"I think we have." Raine actually agreed with the woman.

"Either way, we need to keep going." Kratos strode past them and into the purple glow. Raine frowned slightly and followed him.

"No!" The brunette teen cried. "No! Please! To many warps! Ah!"

"Calm down Lloyd." The mercenary walked up behind him.

"Oh well, sitting here won't do anything." Genis crossed his arms. "I'll go check over here." He strode over to a green warp and was teleported to the other side. His friends waited with bated breath. After a few seconds he returned, and with a sly smile on his lips. He answered in two words. "Found it."

"Yes! I love you Genis." Lloyd picked up the small boy in a bear hug.

"Calm down Lloyd. This relationship is going to fast for my taste." The boy remarked dully. The teen gave him a sour look and ended the hug. Colette giggled.

"Let's go guys! We've got to save Chocolat." The Chosen ran past her friends and tripped into the warp. She was materialized on the other side in mid-air. Genis and Lloyd facepalmed.

"Just when I thought she couldn't get any klutzier..." The half-elf sighed.

"Tell me about it." Lloyd took his face from his hand and shrugged. "Whatever. Let's go. I'm ready to get out of here."

"Me too. Wait up!" They both ran into the pad.

... The adults blinked in unison.

"How come they never wait for us?" Aurora asked no one in particular. When nobody answered, she sighed and followed the kids. Raine, Kratos, and Neil exchanged looks.

"Are they always like this?" Nieil asked.

"More often than not." Kratos replied before warping as well. The teacher bit her bottom lip in thought as she and Neil warped together.

On the other side, prisoners were kept in cages. Two to a cell. A few Desians patrole up and down the lengthy hallway and took the liberty of whipping grasping hands that tried to pickpoket the keys to freedom. A teenage girl with a ponytail and dark brown eyes ran up to her bars and waved at the group.

"Over here!" She whispered. A nearby half-elf reached out and snatched her wrist.

"And what do you think you're doing you little rat?" He smacked her hard across the face. She glared at him, unfazed by the red mark on her cheek.

"Dirty Desian!" She kicked him in the shin. "I told you Dorr would save us!" Her long fingers pointed to the group. The man's lips twisted into a sinister smile.

"Well, well, well. It looks like we have some intruders here." He threw the girls hand back to her. Everyone readied their respective weapons as the enemy stalked forward. He stopped his stride right in front of Colette. Her once joyful azure eyes now represented anger with a trace a fear. The Desian bent down so he was eye level with her. "Do you know what we do with intruders?" His breath reeked of alcohol. The girl's eyes narrowed. He raised his whip and prepared to attack, but Lloyd jumped in front of her and dealt a strong blow to his stomach. He doubled over.

"Didn't your mom teach you not to hit girls?" Genis stepped forward.

"Nope. Your kind killed her when I was three." His own eyes held a fierce hate. Lloyd was taken aback, giving the man a chance to strike. The whip struck his shoulder, cutting into the red fabric. The shoulder's owner tried to grab it, but a sword was already occupying it. The whipmaster grinned so wide you could see his yellowed teeth. "That is why your kind must die. Burn in hell, inferior being! Guards!" Two more Desian seemed to appear out of no where. They weren't much of a threat. The team easily cut them down in about thirty seconds. Everyone minus Lloyd was freeing the prisoners. Said boy, was staring confusedly at the Desian who whipped him.

"C'mon Lloyd! We gotta go! Neil is escaping with the prisoners and Chocolat knows the way to Magnius." Genis pulled on his arm. His friend nodded weakly.

"Yeah. Let's go kill that monster." He turned around, his face unemotional as he followed the group. The small mage cocked his head. That wasn't like Lloyd.

* * *

"So, I see you inferior beings has found me." The pig-looking Grand Cardinal descende in a levitating chair. Both Genis and Raine twitched at his verb usage. "I'm guessing you didn't know I knew what you were up to." He snapped his bulky fingers and a projector flashed to life. On the hollogram were Neil and the other prisoners trying frantically to break down the metal doors that had trapped them. The people not four-thousand years old and not blind gasped.

"What's that?" Colette's brows furrowed along with Lloyd's and Genis's. A spark seemed to be ignited in Raine's eyes. She longed to take apart that machine and study its contents.

"That," Magnius started. "Would be a projector. I have been watching you all this time." A cackle filled the circular room.

"Let them go!" Lloyd orederd. He raised his fist at the ugly man.

He scoffed. "Why should I listen to an inferior being?" His nose stuck itself in the air with pride.

"Hey!" Chococlat stepped forward. "Your the inferior being, not him!"

"Oh really. Protecting our grandmother's murderer are we?" He asked. The girl's nose scrunched up.

"Murderer?"

Aurora frowned. Lloyd and Genis would never... would they?

"Oh yes." Magnius put on a mask of afke sympathy. "These two boys right here killed Marble. Slaughtered her like the vermin she was." He started to cuckle maniacly. "Yes, poor Granny Marble was killed by Lloyd. Mwahaha!"

"N-No!" Chocolat. Took a step back where two Desians were waiting for her.

"Chocolat, I-" Lloyd tried to explain. She shook her head. Aurora's ears went back.

They did.

"No!" The two half-elves advanced towards the young woman.

"It was an accident!" Genis was waving his arms frantically in apology.

"NO! I refuse to be save by my grandma's murderer!" Her eyelids shut themselves tightly. "I hate you!"

Colette got on her toes. "You mustn't say things like that." She begged. The now crying girl was shaking her head vigirously.

"No!" The Desians each took a shoulder and sealed her fate. They dragged her to a warp opposite of the group and teleported away. The red clad teen glared viciously at the laughing half-pig.

"You freakin' monster!" He ran towarsd him with swords posed to kill. It forced the brute to jump out of his comfy chair and onto the floor. He held out his hand and a gigantic battle axe materialized.

"You manipulative, repulsive, creature!" Genis joined his red faced friend and started to cast spells like crazy.

"Eruption! Aqua Edge! Lightening!" He chanted. They were carlessly cast and gave Magnius little problem. Same with Lloyd. His swings were blind and unbalanced. Colette and Aurora pulled out their weapons. Raine held her staff out and started to chant the incantation for first aid. Kratos had to take on the roll of spellcaster since Genis was doing it poorly. The enraged teen swordsman lashed out at Magnius when his back was turned. The hulk moved out of the way just as the person he was fighting raised thier weapon, 'causing Lloyd to hit his teammate.

"Ah!" The person screamed.

"Aurora! I'm sorry." Lloyd panicked. Her head shook in aggrivation.

"Focus." She hissed. "Stop flailing your swords and swing with a purpose!"

"First Aid!" Kratos healed the woman's cut. She nodded quickly and returned to the fray. Lloyd took a deep breath. His eyes narrowed and locked themselves on Magnius. He charged forward, concentrating on his movements, and _Wham!_

The man knocked Lloyd back with the blunt end if his axe.

"Lloyd!" Colette cried. Aurora's eyebrows shot up. Did he not take her advice? Was Magnius not the bumbling, idiotic, hulk he appeared to be. She felt a strange feeling enter her body. It was dark, like anger. Like how she felt when this pig kicked that boy except stronger.

"Shadow Bolt!" She yelled. A stream of dark mana shot out of her hands and into Magnius. Her jaw dropped as everyone turned to stare. This was a new one. The injured man flinched and turned to her.

"Why you little..." She came out of her daze and readied herself into a defensive posistion, but a sword penetrated his stomach before she could do any damdge. Kratos stood behind him with the pig-man skewered on his sword. "Gah!" He coughed up massive amounts of blood. "How could I lose... to... inferior vermin." He slid off the blade with a sickening squelch and was piled in a heap on the floor.

"Thank you." Aurora said bluntly, not to fond of Kratos helping her out.

"You're welcome." He replied emotionlessly. A series of clicks could be heard across the room.

"I've set the ranch to self-destruct and freed the prisoners." Raine announced over her shoulder.

Lloyd gasped. "B-But Chocolat-"

"Was taken to another ranch." The healer explained. "Iselia to be exact. What we need to worry about now is getting out of here." Everyone grunted in agreement and quickly filed out the warp.

* * *

Meanwhile...

"What is taking them so long?" Neil's brow furrowed in worry. He'd already sent the escapees on thier way, and he was now waiting for the group. "Did they... Oh! Here they come." He sighed in relief. But, why were they running. He stared as they passed.

"Gogogo!" Genis took as big steps as his legs would allow.

"Faster-ah!" Colette tripped, but caught herself before she hit the ground.

"See ya later!" Lloyd galloped past him.

"Evacuate the premises!" Raine scurried along.

"..." Kratos just ran past. Neil was frustrated. He stopped Aurora.

"What's going on here?" He asked suspiciously.

She stood up straight and put on a blank expression. "Ranch is going to go boom."

...

"Oh. That's all?" He shrugged. "Because," His eyes narrowed. "You could've told me you were going to blow it up!"

"Blame Raine." Aurora called over her shoulder, leaving poor Neil in the dust. He shouted in frustration and started to run as fast as he could.

Aurora tried to catch up with the group. Her little chat with Neil had laft her behind. As she passed by the woods, her trained ears picked up something.

"Daddy!" It sounded like a small girl. "Daddy! Where are you?" The woman stopped and listened for her again. "Hello! Daddy?" She stepped out of some bushes and stared at Aurora. She had short black hair, bright green eyes, and looked around seven years old. Her tan skin was very dark in comparison to Aurora's ghostly white. "Have you seen my daddy?" She asked.

"No, I'm sorry. You need to leave though." Aurora bent down so she was level with her.

"But I can't find daddy." She hopped in place. The brunette put a hand on her head.

"He's probably with the others. Right now, we need to get you out of here." She turned around. "Get on my back." The little girl smiled and climbed onto Aurora's back.

"Yeah. Piggy back ride!" She wrapped her small arms around the woman's neck.

"Hold on tight." She said.

"Okey-dokey." The kid's arms squeezed tighter. Aurora put her arms under her legs to keep her up and began to run again. Then, the child seemed to realize something. "Why are we running?"

"The ranch is going to go bye-bye, and we don't want to be there when that happens."

"Why?"

"It will be very hot." The woman was trying not to send her into a panic seeing as they were still within a small radius of the ranch. If it blew up, it was going to be very loud. So, she tried to make small talk with her. "What's your name?"

"Delia." She answered.

"Delia? That's a pretty name."

"What's yours?" He voice had that kind of childish tone that made you want to laugh everytime they asked something.

"Aurora."

"That's a pretty name."

"Where do you live?"

"In Palmacoasta. We moved here from Asgard a month ago. My house is right beside the ocean!" She giggled.

"Really?"

"Mm-hm. And my room has a window so I can see it!"

"Your house sounds very pretty. Do your mother and father like it?"

"Daddy does. Mommy died when I was five."

"Oh..."

"It's okay. Mommy always said that no matter what, she'd always be right here." She pushed a tiny finger against Aurora's chest, over her heart.

"Yes, I'm sure she's with you everyday."

_BOOM!_

"Ah!" Delia screamed and pressed her face against Aurora's neck, her grip close to choking the woman carrying her. Both of their ears rung for a few seconds after the explosion. "Was that the ranch leaving?"

Aurora chuckled. "Yep. It's gone. Now tell me, do you see a group of people anywhere?"

The child pursed her lips and scanned the area. "Yes! I see a pretty blonde girl, two sliver headed people, a man in a red suit, and a reallt tall man in a purple suit."

"That's them."

"That's who?"

"My friends. Could you please point me in that direction?"

The small girl pointed a little to her right.

"Okay then." Aurora jogged the rest of the way to her group.

"Hi Aurora! Who's this?" Colette asked as the woman let the girl off her back.

"I'm Delia!" She put her hands on her hips and smiled.

"Hi Delia." Lloyd and Genis chorused.

"Hello." Raine smiled warmly.

No response from Kratos. Who would've guessed?

"Hi!" She waved. Aurora stepped forward.

"She lives in Palmacoasta. We have to take her back."

"That's good. We are going to Palmacoasta anyways." Lloyd shrugged.

"We'll set up camp here for tonight." Kratos announced.

"I'll get the food going." Genis sighed and took off the large bag strapped to his back. "Lloyd, you need to go get firewood."

"Okay."

"Hey!" Delia's eyes widened in recognition.

"What?" Lloyd asked.

"You're that red man in the sign." She clapped her hands. Genis burst out laughing. Tears streamed down his eyes.

"Uh, thanks?" The teen turned red.

Everyone started to settle down for the night. Aurora was sitting beside Genis."Hey Aurora?" THe mage asked.

"Yes Genis?"

"What was that spell you cast today?"

"Um.. Shadow Bolt I think. Why?"

"Could you teach me?"

"Believe me, I would if I could, but I didn't know I could use it in the first place. It just kinda, came out."

"Oh..."

"You can use magic?" Delia stuck her nose between the two.

Aurora chuckled. "You little eavesdropper. Yes, we can use magic, but all mine are water based."

"Can you show me?" She hopped up and down.

"Genis." Aurora raised an eyebrow at the boy.

He smiled. "Sure. What do you wanna see?"

"Um..." She put a finger to her lips in thought. "Wind! Do something with wind!"

"Alright. Wind Blade." The mage cast a very, very, very soft wind blade, causing the brown dress to swirl around her.

"Yeah! Again! Agian!" She clapped.

"Okay. Wind Blade."

She giggled as the dress tickled her legs. "Thank you!" She waved before running off.

"Delia is really..." Genis couldn't find the word for it.

"Hyper?" Aurora asked.

"Yeah. Hyper sounds good."

Lloyd had finally gathered enough firewood to make a decent flame and headed back to camp. A large pile of limbs covered up his face.

"Hiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii mister wanted guy!" Delia popped up beside him causing the teen to jump.

"Ah! Oh, uh... Hi Delia." He greeted her uneasily.

"Did you know I like red?" She smiled up at him.

"No... I uh... didn't know that."

"Do _you_ like red?" She swayed innocently back and forth.

"Um, yeah. I guess."

"Okay!" She scurried off. The teen sighed in relief. _Wierd kid._

The little black head hopped over to Colette next. She was cleaning off her chakrams.

"Ooh! Those are pretty!" Delia ran a finger over one of the rings smooth surfaces.

"Thank you." The blonde smiled.

"How do you use them?"

"Like this." Colette stood up and threw a chakram in the air. It made a large loop, then landed back in the Chosen's outstretched hand.

"Cool! Can I try?"

"Um, sure." The blonde offered one up. The girl picked it up in one hand and threw it in some random direction.

"Ah!" A lock of silver hair fell to the ground. Delia's eyes widened.

"I'm sorry Genis!" She called. Lloyd dropped all the fire wood and started laughing when the loose chakram whizzed over his head, cutting off the points of his spikes.

"Ah, s-"

"Lloyd Irving!" Raine stopped him.

"Sorry!" The green-eyed girl turned a dark shade of red. The chakram finished its run and went straight for her head. "Uh-oh." She crouched down and the deadly weapon of haircutting lodged itself into the dirt. Everyone turned to the kid. "Um... oopsies... hehe..." She hunched up her shoulders. They all sighed and went about their business. Delia left Colette to her chakrams and found Raine. She was hunched over a book about the healing arts.

"Are you reading?" She asked.

"Yes." Raine replied without looking up.

"'Bout what?"

"Healing."

"You can heal?"

"Yes." The woman cotinued to stare at her book, but could no longer concentrate on reading. The girl kept staring. "Delia, could you please let me read?" She asked.

"Okay. I'm sorry." She turned and walked the other way until she stopped at Kratos. He was leaning against a lone tree near the camp. She looked up at the mercenary. "You are really tall." She commented. The man just stared at her. "Heelloooo?" She asked.

"Yes?" He responded.

"You don't talk very much do you?"

"No."

"..." She blinked. "...Okay. Bye." With her head hung low, she left and went to go where Aurora was sitting. Her hands laid on the woman's shoulders as she whispered in her ear.

"That man is scary."

Aurora chuckled at this statement. Colette held her hand over her mouth to hide giggles, for she could also hear it. Kratos facepalmed.

* * *

Once everybody was done eating, they settled in for bed. Lloyd said goodnight once and he was out like a light. Soft snores came from Colette's bag. The occasional snort came from Genis's bag, and Delia was fast asleep in Aurora's lap. All three adults sat up. The blue clad one stroked the small girl's hair.

"She certainly made for a interesting night." The woman commented.

"Yes. It's going to take forever for Lloyd's hair to grow back." Raine said dully, too engrossed in her book to be exited about it.

"Do you guys have an extra sleeping bag? I know I can't have it, but she needs to stay warm." Aurora gestured towards Delia.

"I'm sorry. We don't." Raine replied bluntly. The other woman frowned. Delia couldn't sleep on the ground. What could she-

"Whine!"

Perfect.

"Noishe." She called. The large 'dog' trotted over to her and sat down. Aurora took the girl in her arms and put her against Noishe. The protozoan caught on and wrapped his tail around the girl. "Good boy." She patted him on the head before curling up on the cold earth. She tried as hard as she could to keep her eyes open. Eventually, Raine went to sleep and only Kratos and Aurora were up.

"Go to sleep." He commanded.

"Leave me alone."

"I will when you get some sleep."

She snorted and decided to ignore him. But, fatigue was starting to catch up, and in a few minutes, she conked out.

"Good." Kratos muttered to himself.

* * *

Me: Whew. That was a loooooong chapter. For me anyways. Over seven-thousand words! It's officially the longest capter so far. Y'know, I wasn't planning on keeping Delia. Though she's starting to grow on me. But, you are the fans. I am at your mercy. Please tell me wether you want Delia to stay or not. Please review! My deal is still effective!

Lloyd: That's not helping anything.

Me: Shut up! I'm tired. It's four o'clock. I'm going to bed guys. G'night!


	17. Chapter 16

Me: I took the note down as you can see. Alright then, it seems I won't escape so easily thanks to Moonlight, springflowerangel, Gamer Girl, silk345, and Luzelle.

Lloyd: You could be a little more grateful.

Me: Yeah, I could.

Lloyd: ...

Me: ...

Lloyd: How can you do a humor fic too when you're in a condition like this?

Me: ...Move so I can write the freakin fic...

Lloyd: All this over one Mary Sue comment. And they reviewed on chapter four. Geez. They didn't read the whole story.

Me: Yeah, but a different one did.

Lloyd: Nu-uh. It said Aurora wasn't a Mary Sue.

Me: Yes it did. It said, "I don't think Aurora's THAT Mary Sue." So she's a frickin Mary Sue. I'm ready to chuck this %&$&ing piece of #$*% story.

Lloyd: O.o You never curse!

Me: Oh yeah? Screw you.

Lloyd: ...

* * *

Chapter 16: Home Sweet Home Isn't So Sweet.

* * *

Feet were flying over the grassy fields. Short, ragged breaths racked a woman's body. Freedom. It was so close. Close enough to taste. One hour of running without any sign of her captor. Maybe... it would work.

Maybe...

But of course, life had other plans. A man on a velocidragon was perched on the hill a few hundred feet away calling her name. It was then the woman knew, she would never be free.

* * *

"Ah!" Aurora jerked up and put a hand to her chest. It rose and fell quickly. Her body shook in terror of the nightmare. They always felt so real. Oh, so painfully real. The man sitting across the fire looked to her.

"Another nightmare?" He asked.

Aurora glared at Kratos. "And why do you care?"

He sighed. "If you're going to go through this every morning, I at least want to know why you have to bother me with your screams."

"..." She hugged her knees. "I hate you." She whispered low enough so that no body could hear.

Except for angels of course. The man kept a straight face. What had caused a corruption like this? It apparently was connected to the spazzes she would go into so, it might have something to do with this Ryudo character. Kratos twisted his mouth into a frown. Tiny gasps came from across the site. Aurora had her head on her knees so that her face was covered by hair. A long snort came from her before she looked up. A single tear slipped from under her bandanna. She then uncurled herself from that posistion and sat with her legs crossed.

"Does this have to do with that Ryudo you mentioned?" Kratos asked.

She jumped at his name. "Ho-How did you know I knew him?"

"You called me Ryudo when we stayed at the House of Salvation."

"I-I did not!" She turned red.

"I'm afraid you did. Mind explaining?"

"Yes. I do."

"You'll suceed in killing yourself. You've only gotten three hours of sleep." He announced.

"Good..."

He got up and wakled over. His eyes glared at her. "At least lay back down."

She flinched and moved backwards. "Don't touch me." She spat.

"Who said I was going to touch you?"

"I can tell. Go away." Her voice was menacingly low.

He sighed and went back to his spot. She hmphed, turned her back to him, and laid down again. She didn't go to sleep though, just laid there feeling the cold, red eyes of Kratos Aurion boring into her back.

* * *

"GOOD MORNING!" Delia screeched, causing Noishe to jump about five feet in the air along with everyone else.

"Delia..." Lloyd groaned.

"I was in the middle of a great dream man, c'mon." Genis rubbed his eyes.

Raine frowned at the little girl. The child cowered in fear behind Noishe. Colette yawned deeply and looked to Delia.

"You're a very early riser. The sun isn't even up yet."

"I'm sorry. I guess I'm just used to it since we had to wake up so early in the ranch." She lowered her head.

"It's okay." Aurora reached for the girl. She grabbed her hand and sat beside her.

Genis scoffed. "Says you."

"Genis..." Aurora glared. He paled and started breakfast to ignore her. Delia leaned her head against the woman's shoulder.

"Are we going to get to Palmacoasta today?"

"I think so."

"Hey, mister wanted guy?"

Lloyd twitched. "It's Lloyd. Lloyd Irving."

"Oh. Okey-dokey mister wanted guy." She smiled.

"...Does that poster really look like me?"

"YES!" Genis shouted.

"Shut up Genis!" The teen threw a pillow at friend.

"It's true." He shrugged. Genis finshed up the classic breakfast of scrambled eggs and served everyone. Delia took a bite.

"Wow! This is the best food I've ever eaten!" Her eyes lit up as she scarfed down her plate. Everyone stared at the girl.

"You've got an, uh, appetite don't you?" Genis asked. She swallowed her bite before answering.

"Sorry. It's just, The last time I ate was about two days ago... and it was slop." She made a face.

"It's fine. I'm sure you're really hungry. Here, have mine." Aurora handed her the plate.

"Thank you!" Delia carefully took the nearly full plate from her.

"What about you?" Colette asked.

"I'll be fine." She flicked her wrist.

"No. Here have mine." Colette shoved her the plate and scooted away, glad that she had an excuse not to eat the tasteless food.

"You'll need your strength Colette. Take mine." Raine handed the sickly pale Colette the plate.

"Um. Thank you..." She stared down at the yellow fluffy goodness.

"Sis! Now you'll be hungry! Have mine." He handed his sibling his meal.

...

"I don't know about you guys, but I'm eating mine." Lloyd shoved some more in his already full mouth. Everyone sweatdropped. "What?" He asked through a mouthful.

"Ew." Genis cringed. "Swallow dude. That's disgusting."

The teen finished his bite. "Fine."

"Thank you." Raine nodded.

"You're very funny mister wanted guy!"

"Ugh."

* * *

Kratos and Raine led the group on thier way while Lloyd, Colette, and Genis chatted. Delia held Aurora's hand and went on and on about various things.

"And then, the bird started to peck me in the head!" Delia laughed.

Aurora chuckled nervously. "I suppose it would after you tried to ride it."

"And one time, I found this shiny rock! It was really round and rolly. I used to play catch with it!" She continued.

"Really?" The normal response one would say to an talkative child.

"Mm-hm. But the people at the ranch took it away..." She looked down. Aurora frowned at her sadness.

"Well, what other stories do you have?"

"Oh yeah! One time, I tried to make wings for myself, so I hunted down a bunch of pretty birds and-"

Aurora was already regretting that she asked.

---

"So guys, what do you think of Delia?" Colette asked.

"Hyper?" Genis raised an eyebrow.

"Annoying."

"Lloyd!"

"Well, what if someone went around calling you 'Miss Chosen Lady' all day?"

"... I guess you're right." Colette mused.

"Nah. I think she's okay. Anyone who annoys Lloyd is friends with me!" Genis laughed.

"H-Hey!" Lloyd turned red.

---

"Delia sure seems happy." Raine looked over her shoulder.

"I suppose escaping a place like a human ranch would make anyone happy." Kratos replied.

"I guess." The woman put finger to her chin.

"..." The mercenary looked to her. "You're unhappy Aurora is the hero, no?"

"W-What?"

"It's quite obvious you detest her."

"She's a cripple. Why wouldn't I hate her."

"So you hate her only because she's a cripple?"

"Of course." She crossed her arms. "You can't tell me you like her?"

"I am indifferent."

"But, she's _blind." _

* * *

The arch of the Palmacoasta gate appeared a few hours later. When they reached it, Delia took off.

"Delia wait!" Aurora called out, but she had already gone. "Should I go after her?"

"Yes. We'll be okay." Colette said. The woman nodded and ran after tha girl.

Delia ran through the traffic ridden streets of the city trying to find her house. In her mad dash, she managed to run into another kid, make a woman drop the basket she was carrying, seperate a group of priests, and total a fish stand. Poor Aurora had to quickly apologize to many people and still catch up with the girl. Finally, she came to a stop at a small house near the beach. Her hand jerked the door forward and she ran in. The woman tailing her caught up quickly. The living room was simple and consisted of white walls with two chairs and a coffee table. Delia darted around the room.

"Daddy! I'm home!" After not finding him in the first room, she ran to another, still calling her father out. Aurora decided to stand in the middle of the room and wait for her to find her parent. "Hello? I'm back! Daddy?" She searched a few more minutes before returning to Aurora. "I can't find him."

"Maybe he isn't here yet." The woman suggested. Then, a rather holy looking man stepped in the door.

"Oh! Excuse me. I didn't expect anyone to be here."

"Pastor?" Delia tilted her head.

"You must be Delia." He concluded.

"Yessir!"

"And you are?"

"Aurora." Aurora stated.

"Aurora. Hm... Are you her aunt or something of the sort?"

"No. I found her outside the ranch and brought her here."

"Oh. I came here to clean out the house." He shrugged.

"Clean my house? You're our maid?" The tiny girl's eyebrows scrunched up.

"No, as in, take the furniture out."

"Why would you do a thing like that? How long were we gone?"

The man frowned. "I-I'm truly sorry but, Delia."

"Uh-huh?"

"The prisoners that came back told us that,"

"Yes."

"Y-" He seemed to have a hard time getting it out. "Y-Your father is... dead..."

"What?!" The girl shrieked causing both adults to flinch. "D-Daddy?" She swallowed back her tears. "N-No. Daddy isn't dead." She shook her head violently. "J-Just hiding. I'll find him!" She began to run through the house again looking from behind doors to the most irrational places such as under the salt and pepper shakers.

"I'm sorry I had to tell you that." The man turned to Aurora. She nodded solemly. "Alright then. I'll leave you two alone." And he closed the dorr behind him.

"Daddy! Please! It's me, Delia! I'm home!"

"Delia..."

"No! He's here! I know it! Daddy!" The girl ran past her legs and she stopped her. The woman knelt down to be level with her and placed her hands on her shoulder. Delia started making hiccup-like sobs. "B-But daddy promised t-that he would get out too. When they took him away from me... h-he promised." She burst into tears and pressed her face into Aurora's chest. The woman frowned and hugged the girl, the hot tears staining her tunic. "I want my daddy!" Her voice was muffled by her shirt. "Daddy!" She shrieked over and over again. "DADDY! You were supposed to come back. Y-You promised you wouldn't leave me here without momma! Daddy!" The sobs racked her body and sent shivers down her spine. "I didn't even get to say good bye!" Aurora hugged her tighter. "I didn't get to say 'I love you too'..." A few tears of her own slipped by.

Aurora wondered how many tears could fit in one girl. It took hours for Delia to finish. She was now asleep in the woman's lap, her hands clinging to her shirt. Aurora stroked her hair soothingly still, even though she was now asleep. After three hours, it had become a habit. The door opened...

"Hey- oh..." Lloyd was taken aback by the scene before him. The other filed in and stared at the two.

"What happened?" Colette gasped.

Aurora turned her head slowly to them so she didn't disturb the newly dicovered orphan. "It turns out Delia's father was killed by Desians." She announced softly.

"That's horrible!" Colette frowned.

"How could they do that to a child's father?" Genis asked.

"How long has she been crying?" Lloyd asked.

"Just by estimating, I think three hours."

Everyone went wide-eyed. "That long?" Raine asked skeptically. Aurora nodded.

"Well, I guess we're staying here for the night?" Lloyd asked.

"Yes. It seems so." Kratos said.

"I'll stay here with Delia since I cannot aford a room." The woman on the ground suggested. Her companions nodded and left the two.

* * *

"Wow. That's really sad." Colette said. Lloyd and Genis were on either side of her. Palamacosta inn had a buffet type resturaunt and they were filling their plates. She grabbed some lettuce for her salad with the sturdy wooden tongs provided by the resturaunt.

"Yeah. Those Desians are filthy, no good, dirty, fu-"

"Lloyd!" Genis exclaimed. "Since when did you curse that badly?!"

"Well, they just make me so angry!"

"Lloyd." Colette frowned at her friend. "Please don't use those words..."

He sighed. "Alright. Forget I said anything."

"Agreed." Genis served himself some soup.

* * *

Aurora sat in the middle of the cold, hard, wooden floor for what seemed forever, rocking Delia back and forth. The sleeping girl's eye's fluttered open.

"A-Aurora...?" She asked looking up.

"Yes?"

"...It wasn't a dream... was it?" Her eyes were hopeful. The woman shook her head reluctantly, afraid she might go into another fit. "I thought so..." The closest she got to sobbing was a few tears. She was cried out. "I'm tired." She curled up tighter. Aurora stood up.

"Where's your room?"

"Down the hallway, last one on the right."

The woman carried her there and set her on the small, red bed. Delia shivered when the warmth of her body heat left and climbed under the covers.

"Aurora?"

"Yes Delia?"

"Can you sing me a song? Like daddy used to?"

"Alright." She summoned her harp as the child looked on in amazement.

"It's so pretty..."

"Thank you." Aurora began to stroke it gently, soft notes floated around the room. After a few bars, she opened her mouth and an unbearably sweet soprano erupted from her chest. The words were forgien to Delia, but she felt as if it were any old nursery rhyme that she'd heard a million times. It only took her a few seconds to drift away with the melody. Aurora led the music fade away. She reached her hand out and petted the tiny girl's head.

"Dream good dreams for me. I can't seem to."

* * *

Me: Well, not as long as I wanted but, it works.

Lloyd: Feel better now?

Me: *Sniffles* Yeah. A little bit. Uh... sorry about-

Lloyd: It's okay.

Me: Thanks for the people who kept me going. You all get ice cream.

Lloyd: Review please. Help her through this deppresion. I'm in her mind, and it sucks.


	18. Chapter 17

(A/N: The thought just occured to me that some of the readers might mistake the previous chapter for the author's note. I've taken it down so, go read the real chapter 16 before you read this one. And for those of you who have read this chapter before I editied the title, wel, I did! I named it wrong... sad face... embarrased face... wierd slash things that mean you're embarrased... ////)

Me: Noooooooooooooooooo!

Genis: What?

Me: Freshman registration was today! Noooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

(One hour later...)

Me: ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

Genis: Cut it out already!

Me: oooo. Okay. I'm done. Uh, not really sure what to say about this chapter. I have a feeling it will be criticized harshly.

Genis: You'll say that, then go into a depression because someone actually criticized your crappy story.

Me: ... You're so hurtful.

Genis: I know I am.

Me: ...Sad face...

* * *

Chapter 17: Reference GO!

Aurora sat at Delia's bedside for an hour. The sun had finally gone down and Palmacoasta's night dwellers had started to awaken. Even at dusk, the streets were clogged. The woman knew if she just kept sitting there, she would fall asleep, so she got up and left outside. She locked the door behind her, then started to roam the winding pathways. The sounds of chatting and walking were droned out to make room for thoughts. What happened with the others that day? What do we do next? Where is Delia going to stay? Her feet went into auto mode and carried her whever they might stray. Soon, the sounds of Palmacoasta's night life became less violent, and a darker shade of black was all Aurora could see through her bandanam instead of red and yellow hues. She walked on into an alley way without fully noticing.

"Well, look what we have here." A voice said from the shadows. Aurora snapped back into reality and grabbed the... empty space behind her shoulder. She had forgotton her sword. "Hey. I know you. You belong to that, uh... Ryudo guy right?" He asked.

"N-Not anymore." The defenseless woman stuttered out.

"Oh, that's a shame. But," He got up close to her face. He had short black hair and piercing gray eyes. The stench of alcohol on his breath was heavy enough to make you drunk just by inhaling it. The woman gasped and choked on the scent. He started to wrap his arms around her. "Now, _I _can have you all to myself."

Funny thing this situation. The alley it happened to occur in was right below the window of Kratos Aurion's room. The angel could hear voices coming from below. He pushed the glass open enough so that he could stick his head out. Aurora was trying to pull away from some guy who apparently didn't intend on getting only to first or second base with her. Kratos snorted in disgust and ran outside quickly. He rounded the corner just in time to see the man get a hand up Aurora's shirt.

"Help!" She screamed. "Please!" The mercenary narrowed his eyes and kicked the man in the stomach, knocking him backward into the alley wall. As soon as Aurora was released, she knelt in the corner she had been cornered in. Her arms were covering parts of her body that felt violated. Meanwhile, her savior was giving the other man the beating of a life time.

Kratos gave him another kick to the stomach. "It is unbecoming to treat a woman in such a manner." Kick to the stomach. "I suggest you leave here immediately and never return." The man on the ground, bleeding and injured, flinched, bracing for another attack that never came. Once he regained his senses, he darted out of the alley. The mercenary watched him leave and went over to Aurora. Her legs were shut tightly together and her arms were covering her chest from sight. Kratos didn't even get within one yard of her.

"What do you want from me?!" She blurted out.

Kratos looked strangely at her. "For you to go back to Delia's house."

"N-No. You want something else. I can tell." Her glare was magnyfied by the dim lighting. It gave an eerie glow to her pale form and made her look like a vampire. "Please then, enlighten me."

"The only reason I'm still here is because you let me be. I can tell that Raine would've killed me if it weren't for you telling her not to. The kids have no real power. The only reason I'm sitting here in this corner, is because you allowed me to be. Most men don't tolerate cripples, unless it's a woman and they want something." She shivered.

"I am not like most men." He replied.

"I don't believe that." She turned away from him slightly.

"Fine. You don't have to. Just believe that you are going back to Delia's house."

Her body shakily got up and faced him. "Then you," She pointed a twitching finger at him. "Move." He calmly stepped to the side and let her pass. She walked past him and into the more busy part of Palmacoasta.

A few things bothered Kratos. Why was Aurora out? How did she get here? Why did she come here? Will she get into something else on the way back? He sighed, shrugged, and decided to let the goddess decide. Pft, yeah. The goddess would take care of her. The one trapped in a seed with no body.

* * *

Aurora took a seat back beside Delia. Her tiny figure was sprawled out on the bed in an awkward fashion. She was obviously a restless sleeper. It took all of the woman's willpower to stay awake the whole night. She'd done everything to playing more music, wandering around the house (since the outside wasn't too pleasant) and shaking her head viciously from time to time. Oh, how she envied Delia right then. It would be so nice to go to sleep again and dream dreams of her friends and family, her kid adventures, and everything blissful. Now, she was a used, dirty, blind woman that could no longer sleep either for fear of the past returning. Her foot twitched impatiently as the sun began to reach its rosy fingers over the horizon. A soft, pink shade started to tint the black void Aurora saw. Took it long enough. The small girl in bed yawned and rolled over to face Aurora in the chair. She slid out of bed and went to sit in the woman's lap. Her bright green eyes looked up into her bandana.

"It's still real?" Rays of gold filled through a small window and put a spotlght on the pair.

"I'm sorry." The woman petted her head. "Do you have any other family?"

Delia shook her head. "Daddy was all I had left..." She leaned against her. Aurora hugged her in a motherly fashion, gently rocking her for a few moments. Tiny hands grabbed Aurora's collar. "Where am I going to go?" She asked fearfully. "I don't want to be alone!" The tears started to come back.

"If I can convince the group, I'm sure you could travel with us. But you'll need to find other clothes than this... thing you're wearing. It's very itchy."

Delia's eyes sparkled with hope in the morning light. She hopped off her lap and ran to a closet on the opposite side of the room. She slipped in and closed the door. Several moments passed as Aurora waited patiently for her return. When the girl came out she was wearing a red tank-top, black shorts, a black headband, and red shoes with black bottoms. The rich colors made her eyes stand out more than they already did.

"Okay-dokey! I'm ready!" She tugged on Aurora's glove. The woman chuckled and followed the girl to Palmacoasta inn.

* * *

When the two arrived, Lloyd was walking out.

"Oh. Hey guys! I was just about to come and get you, but it seems you are already up." He waved his hand in the air. "The rest have already grabbed a table in the buffet so you can just go in and eat."

"Thank you Lloyd." Aurora nodded as they passed by him.

"Hi Aurora! Hi Delia!" Colette greeted them happily. In oreder from wherever, it was Colette, Lloyd, Genis, Raine, and Kratos. Delia took her seat next to Kratos and Aurora positioned herself between Colette and Delia.

"Are you feeling better now Delia?" Raine asked. The child shook her head. "Good. I'm glad you're okay."

"Wow. Did you really cry for three hours- OW!" Lloyd rubbed a newly born bump on his head.

"I don't know. It was all kind of merged into one second." She muttered softly.

...

Genis broke the ice. "Well uh, let's eat!" He sprang up and sprinted towards the omelet station with Lloyd catching up. Colette giggled, then left for the muffins. Raine stood up like a dignified Professor and marched over to the pancakes. Aurora took Delia by the hand and followed her to the fruit section. Kratos just mingled in different sections picking up something here or there. Once they all got thier food, they sat down and dug in.

"Mmph! Mmm- thish ish great!" Lloyd spoke through a mouthful.

"It's only great to _look_ at _before_ it goes into the mouth though Lloyd." Genis threw a grape at him and hit him in the eye.

"Hey!" The teen was forced to spit some of his food out. Everyone cringed except for Aurora. The lucky one who didn't have to look at Lloyd's half digested glob of omelet.

"Genis. Lloyd. Stop that this instant do you hear me?!" Raine's face became red.

"Yes Professor."

"Yes sis."

Both boys slunk into their chairs. Delia just played around with her food, occasionally popping a piece of pineapple or strawberry into her mouth. Aurora mimicked her actions. The child looked over to her friend's plate.

"Aren't you hungry?" She asked.

"No, not really."

"Oh."

"..." Aurora looked down for a second. "Guys... I think we need to take Delia with us." She announced.

"I second that motion!" Genis raised his hands.

"Me too!" Colette joined him.

Lloyd shrugged. "Ah. She's a good kid, even though she still calls me mister wanted guy, I want her to stay too."

"No." Raine and Kratos answered simoultaneously.

"No?" The rest asked.

"She cannot fight. She will only be a burden." Kratos voiced.

"Exactly. And she's only a child." Raine added.

"But she's homeless! How could you do that Raine?" Genis asked. "We were homeless once remember?"

"Genis I-"

"Yeah. And, and, she uh... is great for entertainment! Yeah." Lloyd tried to help.

"No." Kratos stated once more.

"But-"

"No. It's okay." Delia pushed herself away from the table. "I'll find someplace to live." Her tiny figure started to leave, hunched over and depressed. Aurora glared at the adults before grabbing Delia's wrist.

"You're staying." She commanded. A small sliver of hope shimmered in the girl's green eyes, but only a tiny fraction.

"I say yes too." Colette said.

"Me too!" Lloyd chimed in.

"Me three! Four against two, looks like she's staying. Sorry guys." Genis shrugged at Raine and Kratos. The glares they gave were enough to shut them up... for now.

* * *

For the most part, the meal went on without much action. They ate, drank, laughed, purposely spilled lemonade on Kratos's pants, (Give you three guesses who did that.) and were now on thier way to the HoS. Kratos was up in the front, and Lloyd was waaaaay in the back, for... reasons. Everyone else just merged in the middle.

"So, now we go to Haknoesia Peak and give that stupid man the statue right?" Genis asked.

"Yes. It's about time we paid a visit to him." Raine stroked her chin in thought. All of those artifacts. Oh, if only they were hers.

"Hello? Raine? Hello? Sylvarant to Raine!" The mage waved a hand in front of his sister's frozen face. He finallygave up after five minutes. "Ladies and Gentlemen, Raine has left the building." He shook his head. A _shing_ came from the front of the group. Kratos had his sword out and ready.

"On your guard." He warned. The group posistoned themselves for battle 'cept Raine.

"Raine." Genis nudged his sister. "Yo. Raine. Snap out of it." He said through clenched teeth. Her mind came back to reality.

"Why does everyone have thier weapons out?" She asked. Her companions sweatdropped.

"Raine. Get ready already." Genis rolled his eyes.

"Alright already I'm ready." She took out her staff and held it firmly out at arms length.

The wind blew softly around them. For a moment, it was the only sound there. Out of nowhere, two bandits, and archer, and a witch appeared.

"Titans GO!" Lloyd shouted. Everyone, even the thieves looked at him. "Uh..." He scratched the back of his head nervously. "It, just came out. Heh..." Pretty much everybody rolled thier eyes and got back to the battle.

Kratos and Lloyd took on the bandits while Genis dueled with the witch. Raine stood out of the fire and cast healing spells when need be. Aurora was searching for a safe place to put Delia when,

"Ah!" She grabbed her shoulder. An arrow was lodged into her flesh all the way down to the end if the arrow head. She made high pitched noises due to the pain, trying to keep from going ballistic.

"Aurora!" Delia shrieked. The woman shook her head and turned away. A child didn't need to see all of the blood pouring out of the wound. The others looked over to check on her and then went back to the battle. Kratos dealt the finishing blows to both bandits and went to help with the witch. Delia tried to inch around Aurora to see the wound, but all she managed to see was an arrow. Her body turned swiflty and her glare was set on the archer. She ran up to him and started to carlessly kick him in the shin.

"You stupid man! How dare you hurt Aurora!" Her face was red with anger.

"No! Delia don't- ah!" The pain in the woman's shoulder surged once again.

The man looked down at the petite girl who assaulted him and smirked. "Buzz off kid." In one swift motion, the archer's foot connected with Delia's stomach and she went flying. At the end of her arch, she landed in a heap. "Delia! Delia!" Aurora shouted.

"Eruption!" Genis finished off the witch, and now everyone was focused on the archer. He'd noticed that his friends were gone and he was surrounded. But, he wasn't going without taking someone with him. He quickly stalked over to the deflated lump of Delia and took aim.

"Die." He said.

"No! Take me!" Aurora screamed getting everyone's attention. The man shrugged and aimed at her. Colette tried to deflect the deadly arrow, but it was too late. The last one made its home in Aurora's abdomen. She shrieked in pain and fell to her knees, then on her side. She curled up in a ball around the arrow.

"Aurora!" Genis and Colette called. Lloyd's face twisted in anger as he charged towards the archer. In one swipe, he was on the ground, decaying in a puddle of bood. But one swipe wasn't good enough. One. Two. Three. Four. Five. Six. Seven. Eight.

"Lloyd!" Raine stopped him. His face whipped around to her with pain written all over his face. "There are children present. Chopping up a person into bite sized pieces isn't going to make it any eaiser on her." She motioned towards Delia.

The girl was starting to move again. The first thing she saw was Aurora's lifeless body. "Aurora!" She ran over to her. "Aurora! Not you too!" She shook her body viciously. "You have to wake up!" She tapped her head. "Wake up! Now!" Her expression deflated. "But, you were the only person I had left..."

"I'm fine." Aurora croaked out. Everyone perked up.

"Aurora!" Delia wrapped her arms around the woman's neck, but there wasn't much the woman could do in return.

"I'm so glad you're alive!" Colette hugged her to.

"Yeah!" Genis joined.

Lloyd shrugged. "Eh, what the hey." He hugged her too.

"Thanks guys-" She started to cough up large amounts of blood. The once touchy feely companions were now making sure to keep thier distance.

"Move," Raine said. "Someone has to take out the arrows before I can heal it."

Kraos stepped forward and bent down next to the girl. Her breaths were short and ragged. With one sharp pull, he dislodged the arrow in her shoulder, but caused her to scream. His ears, being very sensitive, rang after she was finished. He braced himself for the second one, but it didn't help much. She was now gasping for air to fill her lungs and clawing at the places the arrows used to be. Raine moved him aside.

"First Aid." She cast. A warm green glow surrounded her. It didn't do much except seal up the wound. The rest would have to heal the old fashioned way.

Aurora nodded in thanks and tried to push herself up. After she was two inches in the air, she shrieked in pain and clutched her stomach.

"Someone's gonna have to carry her." Genis said. The woman raised her eyebrows.

"N-No I'm fine. See?" She forced herself to stand up, but the pain was unbearable. Her face was distorted with immense pain as she tried to act like normal. After a few steps, she stubled over herself and landed front first on the ground causing her to scream again.

"... Kratos?" Lloyd looked to the mercenary. The older man sighed and picked Aurora up, much to her dismay.

"Put me down." She growled.

"I am afraid that will not be feesible."

"I said now."

"And I say no."

"...At least make me unconcious so I don't have to know I'm here." She frowned.

All went black.

* * *

Aurora woke up from her little nap and realized, she was in a bed. A sturdy cloth material was wrapped around her stomach as a bandage and another one around her shoulder. As she inched up to an inclined posistion, a shock rocketed down her spine, forcing her back down. She laid there panting for a minute. Where was she? What happened? The door clicked as someone came in. Delia peeked her head in.

"Aurora! You're awake!" She ran over to her bed and sat on the edge of it. "Are you okay?"

"Yes. I think so." Woah. Her voice was hoarse. Really hoarse. "Uh, what happened?"

"The scary person hit you on the head really hard. I asked him why and he said you asked him to. I said he was lying but he kept saying you did."

"I think he took my comment a little to literaly." Aurora muttered to herself.

"I brought you some food." Delia announced and handed the injured woman a sandwich.

"Thank you."

"No problem."

They both sat there quietly as Aurora munched away on her sandwich. The child swung her legs off the edge and twiddled her thumbs. The woman stope eating.

"Something wrong Delia?" She asked.

The girl looked towards her, then back to her feet. "The adults don't know it but, we can hear them sometimes."

"Really?"

"Mm-hm. They were talking about..."

"About?"

"Me." It was a whisper. "They were wondering where to drop me off at in the next city."

Aurora looked at her sympathetically. "Well, maybe it's for the best."

"But I wanna stay with you!" The girl frowned.

Aurora started to sit up, biting her tongue harder with each inch. When she was finally comfortable, she began. "If they drop you off at the next city,"

Delia looked to Aurora with hope.

"I'll stay there with you. Okay?"

The girl smiled. "Okay! That sounds good to me."

"Alright then." The woman chuckled. "Get some rest. We have a big day tomorrow."

"Okey-dokey." The girl slid off the covers and ran to the bed across from her roommates. "Nighty-night Aurora."

She chuckled. "Nighty-night." She just sat there and waited for the girl to go to sleep. It didn't take long. Guess getting hit in the gut by something four times as big as you would tire you out. Now, the real challenge was for Aurora to resent her instincts and stay up all night.

Delia's snores didn't help matters either.

* * *

Me: Okay. I'm tired.

Genis: That's what you get for typing and playing WoW at the same time.

Me: Don't judge me! Anyways, ShadowVDP, Gamer Girl, and Luzelle all get ice cream for reviewing! Now to fall asleep to the wonderful music of Avenue Q! I swear, I'm addicted to that stuff.

Genis: I know. I'm in your head, and it sucks. Get-a-life!

Me: No. I kinda like my no life here at fanfiction, I think I'll keep it thank you very much!

Genis: Oh boy...

Me: SCHADENFREUDE! XD


	19. Chapter 18

Me: 'Ello peoples! Sorry for not updating yesterday. After fanfiction finished fixing the login problems... my internet goes bad. Just my luck. Anyway, I'm chatting with my friends on ventrilo! Say hi friends!

Snowangel: Hihi! :D

Bloodshed: Hey!

Readers: Hi!

Me: So, about last chapter... yeah... titled wrong. //// I changed it though. I was typing that chapter during the login problems, saved it, got logged out automatically (without it saving), finally got BACK on, forgot to fix the errors in the chapter, and posted it with the wrong title. I'm such a dumb #$%. Oh well.

Genis: All these errors are probably annoying.

Me:... Sorry... And also, somethings been wrong with the reveiws. It'll say I have so-and-so reviews, but it takes hours and hours to show up. So, if I don't get you icecream in the next chapter, I'll get you in the next one after that. Speaking of which, little_pocketmouse, ShadowVDP, FantasyFanatic911, and silk345 all get icecream! Yay! Just one more and this fic would have fifty reviews! Oh well. Guess it'll happen next time.

Genis: You seem awfuly cheery seeing that your day was crappy.

Me: Yeah. I had to wake up early, go to the eye doctor, go shopping at many different shops (I hate shopping), it was freakin hot, I gots no mre reviews today, I didn't get to update yesterday, my vetrilo hasn't worked until now, and my friends had to go to sleep already. Oh, and I found out, that, because of the budget cuts, I don't get art _or_ music this semester!!!!!!! I'm so sad now wah! :( I hope you're happy Lloyd. You just brought me down.

Genis: Then my purpose in life is done.

Me: ...sad face... On with the fic!!!

* * *

Chapter 18: I Hope I Titled This Correctly!!!

Aurora's throat was bone dry. It hurt to even talk. She looked to the window, willing the sun to come up. Just a little more. C'mon... Her chest heaved with a sigh as she plopped back down on her mattress and ran her fingers through her hair. The sleepless nights were long and arduous, but if it kept away the nightmares, so be it. Her head was leaned back against the hard wall, giving the appearance that she was staring at the ceiling. _Must stay awake. Must say awake._ The mantra ran through her mind over and over like a broken record. It was like counting sheep except it had the opposite effect. Over in the other bed, Delia tossed and turned causing her sheets to come off. Aurora just sat there motionless. She could easily be mistaken for sleeping. Finding hardly anything else to do, she concentrated on breathing. In. Out. In. Out. Her body made over exaggerated movements with each inhale and exhale. More time passed, and every second seemed an eternity, when finally, Delia awoke.

She yawned deeply and stretched out her arms. "Good-morning Aurora. Sleep okay?"

The older woman's eyebrow twitched at the question. "Y-Yes. I slept fine."

A small growl joined the conversation. Delia looked down at her stomach and blushed. "Uh, I guess I'm hungry."

"Do you want me to take you downstairs?" Aurora offered.

"Can you walk?"

The woman inhaled deeply and chanted the words to her special healing move. "Heaven's Tear." She whispered. Another subliminal flash of light surrounded her and eased some of the pain. She sat up this time with less pain than before. It was enough to cause discomfort but otherwise, she would be fine. Her feet slid out from under the covers and stood on the cold hardwood. Her toes flinched a little on contact. Delia, the ball of energy she was, sprang to attention and stood before Aurora up and ready to go.

"Have you always been this hyper." The woman asked teasingly.

"Maaaaaybe..." The girl replied innocently as she swung back and forth on the balls of her feet. Aurora's eyebrows motioned as if she were rolling her eyes and stood up. A slight shock of pain ran down her spine but not enough to disable movement. The group should be ready to travel again today. She smiled and took Delia by the hand. The small girl pulled her out the door and downstaris to where the smell of food wafted around the lobby/church. Both girls took a deep breath, savoring the sweet smell of pancakes with blueberries in them. Delia realeased Aurora's hand and darted outside as fast a humanely possible. The woman shook her head at her eagerness as she followed the hyperactive seven-year old who followed her stomach.

"Wow Genis! This is great!" She was already munching down on a stack of fluffy goodness. Crumbs could be found in the corners of her mouth. The cook puffed out his chest and huffed with satisfaction.

"Thank-you."

"Hello." Aurora made her presence known. The whole group except Lloys was already up. They all looked up to her and said their respective hellos. "Where's Lloyd?"

"Asleep." Colette answered. "He really likes to sleep."

"Oh really?"

"Tsh. No kidding." Genis started. "He's slept all the way through class before because Dirk had gone off somewhere and left him alone. We all thought he'd been kidnapped or something. Raine was so mad when we found him in his bed. She hit him so hard, I swear some teeth came loose."

"And I have the spaces to prove it." Afore mentioned lazy swordsman walked up behind his friend and dumped a bucket full of cold water on him.

"H-Hey!" Genis tried to cover his head in defense, but no luck. His hair was still massively drenched. Silver locks of hair were smooshed to his face now. He shook his head violently managing to get everyone wet and dum down the fire some.

"Ah!" Raine used a book for defense.

"Hey, yourself!" Lloyd put his hands in front of him as a shield.

"Genis!" Aurora smiled despite herself.

"Whee!" Delia and Colette squealed in unison.

"..." Kratos endured the onslaught of liquid quietly, then calmly pushed a few wet strands of auburn hair from his eyes.

"Great. Now we're all wet." Lloyd complained.

"Nah-ah! I don't wanna hear it! You dumped the water on me!" Genis crossed his arms in a defiant manner. The teen glared at him because he was right. Why did he always have to be right huh? No fair!

"Would you two be quiet!" Raine glared, wringing out her hair. A small puddle formed around her area. The boys frowned and slunk into thier own spots, trying thier best not to make eye contact with the pissed teacher. Colette and Delia giggled along with Aurora, all three creating one large mud puddle as the dryed thier hair out together.

They finished breakfast and made sure to pick up the trash. While picking up a pan, it occured to Aurora. She gasped and dropped the heavy pan on her toe. Of all the gosh darned things that could've happened. Ugh. She whimpered a little making sure the others didn't notice. After packing the stuff, she faced the group.

"How did I get a room? I don't have any gald." She asked.

"Mr. Kratos paid for it." Colette beamed as if nothing were wrong.

The woman frowned disapprovingly. "What?" Her voice was menacingly low. "I don't need to sleep inside, you just wasted your gald."

"You needed a room. Without a proper bed, your wounds would not have healed correctly resulting in a longer recouperation time." The mercenary stated. The woman's glare was intense with fury. But he was right. She took a deep breath and bit the inside of her lip.

"Alright then. Let's go." Her stomach felt sick.

* * *

"Ah yes!" The old man on the mountain was examining the priceless statue. His eyes were filled with lust as he gazed upon the pristine cut diamonds and flowing, solid gold dress. Smirking in victory, he set it on a nearby table. "Fine then. A deal's a deal." He stepped away from his spot to reveal the book they'd been seeking. Raine advanced towrds it with an eerie glint in her bright blue eyes. Her hand clasped sround the book, but was stopped by another. She glared viciously at the person who kept this precious artifact from her. The wrinkled old hoot smiled a not so toothy smile.

"What?!" The rabid teacher snapped.

"Ah-ah-ah. I said you could _look_ at the book. Not take it."A mischievous expression crossed his face as the woman's eyes widened in realization. She'd been tricked!? But- how... Tears began to fill her eyes, but she quickly sucked them back up and nodded.

"Very well then." She replied. Her fingers pulled back the tattered leather cover of the book and opened it to pages filled with odd characters. Her body grew ill with frustration. "Colette." She called softly, trying not to relay her anger to the already infuriated group.

"Y-Yes Professor?" The Chosen asked cautiously.

"Please come read these passages. It is written in angelic language, so I cannot decipher it. The blonde swallowed her saliva nervously and leaned over the podium on which the book was laying. The partial descriptions helped with some of the seals and reffered to the two they'd alredy visited.

"Alright then!" The old man put his hands together. "Thank you for your business! Please leave and never return." He quickly ushured the group outside, knocking Lloyd forwards in top of Genis and Aurora, Genis being on the bottom.

"Oops!" The teen turned tomato red.

"It's okay." Aurora forgave him.

"No it's NOT!" Came the muffled scream from under Aurora. She raised an eyebrow and tried to roll off of the person under her.

"Uh, Lloyd?" The woman asked.

"Huh?- Oh!" He came back to reality and got off of the pair. Aurora rolled of of the mage as he gasped for breath as soon as escaping. The woman still on the ground let out a few whimpereing noises. That fall had stretched her scabs a bit, but it was still painful. Odd squeaks emitted from her throat as she pushed herself upright.

"Okay." She managed to get out. "What now?"

"We got a pass off Dorr to get into Haknoesia Peak!" Genis answered.

"Yes. That should lead us to the next seal." Raine added. Aurora nodded and stood up. Delia saw her struggling and grabbed her hand for support. The swordswoman smailed at the girl for thanks and beagon to follow the group.

* * *

As soon as Aurora set foot on that mounatain, she knew the rest of the day was going to be hell. It was steep, uneven, and rocky. That, plus an injured mid and stubbed toe could spell out disaster. Her feet kept getting tangled up in rocks and small crevices, and with each trip, her arrow wound would hurt just a bit more than it did before. During the trrek, she sounded about like Raine did at the Triet ruins, squeaking and tripping all the way.

The rest seemed to have minimal problems. The worst so far was that Colette tripped over a rock and into Lloyd who almost fell off the edge, but otherwise, perfectly normal. Minutes and Hours slipped by like sand in an hourglass and the atmosphere started to take on a pinkish orange hue. Delia looked up from her feet to the sunset.

"Ooh! Pretty!" She giggled and skipped along. Without looking at her feet, she caught her right foot on a rock and fell flat on her face.

"Delia!" Aurora rushed over.

"I'm okay." The fallen girl lazily lifted a fist in a thumbs up posistion. The woman beside her sighed and helped her up. "Thank-you Aurora!" She smiled.

The woman smiled back and warned her, "Watch where you're going next time, okay?"

"Okay."

"Good."

Delia nodded and walkd by her side. She couldn't help but notice the rustic taste in her mouth. Blood? She reached inside her mouth and found the source of blood.

Her tooth was loose.

She panicked and turned to her guardian.

"Aurora!" She frowned. "Aurora look!" She pulled on her glove. The woman looked down concernedly at her charge.

"What?" She asked.

"Look! Look!"

"Delia, I would but, I can't."

"Argh!" The tiny girl grabbed one of the woman's fingers and rubbed it against her tooth. Aurora shivered a little, disgusted at the fresh blood on her fingers, but chuckled.

"Oh Delia. You're just loosing your first tooth."

That didn't help. "But I only though old people loose thier teeth! I'm not old! Will I lose all mine forever?" That just seemed to make it worse. Everyone had stopped to watch them and sweatdropped.

"N-No!" Aurora tried to fix her mistake. "That tooth that's loose is your baby one. When it falls out, an adult one will come in."

Her green eyes widened. "So I _am _old!" Her voice cracked.

"No no no!"

Smirks and snickers could be heard amongst their companions.

"Delia. It's fine. This is a normal time to lose your teeth." The woman assured her.

"R-Really." The girl sniffed some of the mucus that was escaoing back up.

"Really." Aurora sighed in relief. "Now then. Let us be going then."

* * *

Walking... Walking... More walking... More walking...

And, even more walking. By now, Aurora's feet felt like mush and all she wanted to do was sit down. She rolled her neck for a few seconds, trying to get a cramp out of it that was bugging the heck outta her. Not paying attention, she, herself, failed to 'watch' where she was going, and tripped off a rock larger than the previous ones. She let out a yelp when nothing solid came in contact with her. That was it. Death from falling off a cliff. Her face squinched up in preperation for the end but, suddenly, a strong pair of arms wrapped around her waist and hugged her to the owner as the place where she was just standing crumbled into oblivion. She shook for a second until she realized her heart was still beating.

"I'm not dead?" She asked.

"No." Kratos answered, his chest sending off vibrations through her body as well. He felt more of her heat than he had before since now she was all the way pressed up against him. The woman fliched and tried to pull away from his grip. When she did, her feet found thier way back to the edge again. She shrieked in terror and Kratos saved her.

Again.

"Don't be a fool. Accept help when it comes." He stated and let her go more gently this time. She gulped and inched away from the man.

"Are you okay?" The children all crowded around her in an attempt to ensure her saftey. Raine snroted distastefully. She was holding them back. They should've just left her back at the HoS.

"I'm fine, I'm fine." Aurora assured the children for about another hour. When they were finally satisfied, Delia was the only one left by her side. Her tiny fingers were gripping her slender ones tightly, for fear of her falling again. The last thing she wanted was for the only person who cared about her to die.

The pink faded to blue, which eventually faded to black. The sun had went into hiding as the group reached the summit of Haknoesia Peak. It was a flat, circular plateu that had been made specifically for setting up a camp.

"Fianlly." Lloyd just fell down in a random spot. His feet, just like everyone else's, were throbbing quiet painfully. It flet like too much blood was being pumped too fast.

"Nugh." Genis and Delia coth fell to thier knees. The mage cursed to himelf. How was he going to cook without wood? There was no wood here.

"We're going without food tonight!" He announced. A collective groan chorused around the group. "Sorry!" He apologized. "But there's nothing to cook it with. Just eat an apple gel for strength." Most just conked out in ten seconds. Aurora was sitting on a rock and tried to keep conciousness. Kratos, being an angel, was the only other person left awake.

"You need sleep Aurora or you're going to die." He commanded. Her lip curled up in frustration, but she did nothing otherwise. "..." He glared at her. "Do I have to put you to sleep again like the last time?" He threatened, his low tone betraying his own frustration, something he rarely showed. The woman perched on her rock kept on ignoring him. His fist closed around his sword's hilt as he made his way towards her. Her eyebrows shot up and her body jerked itself off the rock. Her landing was poor and she ended up loosing her balance for the third time today. Kratos sighed and quickly grabbed her again.

"..." She just stood there, an unhappy look on her face.

"At least say something." He commanded.

"Let go."

"Will you sleep?"

"No." She tried to pull away, but he held her tighter. Once again, her mind snapped. She started to jerk more violently and her throat emanted panicked noises. "Let go!" She screeched. Her sleeping companions fliched in thier sleep. The mercenary sighed, frustrated, and held her mouth.

"Stop this." He ordered. Her countenance relaxed a little more and she slid out of his grasp. "Thank you." He crossed his arms.

"Go away." She muttered and went back to her rock. Kratos glared at her, but went no further. It would just be a waste of time, but he swore, he would get to the bottom of this. He had to if he was ever to finish his assasination.

* * *

Me: Haha! I bet you all forgot about his assasination orders! I did... XD

Genis: You finished early.

Me: I know.

Genis: ...Don't you think you should write more?

Me: No.

Genis: Why?

Me: Tired. I've got to wake up at 7:00 so I need this extra sleep time. It is now 3:00 opposed to my usual time at 4:00. An extra hour. Hope you all enjoyed this chapter. Please review!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Exlamation Point!!!!!!!! XD


	20. Chapter 19

Me: Hello fellow readers. Last chapter sucked because, well, I don't know. Major WB I guess... But, I swear, this chapter will be better. Why you ask? 'Tis because I actually have most of it laid out instead of pulling everything from the air like crappy magic.

Genis: Hey, you have five reviews don't you?

Me: o.o! You're right. I do! Thanks to ShadowVDP, Gamer Girl, Luzelle, and RushingRiver for thier support! You all may have ice cream.

Genis: You're diminishing our budget giving out all that ice cream.

Me: What budget?

Genis:...

Me: Anyway, my friends no on today so's I can't chat with them :(

Genis: Well, now you can focus more on the chapter.

Me: Yeah, I guess. I have a feeling this one is going to be a good one.

Genis: Riiiiiiiiight.

Me: Yeeeeeeeeeeessssss.

Genis: I was being sarcaaaaaaaaaaastiiiic.

Me: I knoooooooooooow.

Genis: Okaaaaaaaaaaaaaaay.

Me: Can we stop noooooooooooooow.

Genis: That's fiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiine.

Me: Okaaaaaaaaaay. Next chapter!

* * *

Chapter 19: Uh..., Chapter 19! Huzzah! (I have major WB when it comes to the titles...)

Our favorite swordswoman was twitchy by the time the sun decided to show. Her right foot would jerk a little every few seconds. Raine was the first one up that morning. When she looked around the camp and saw that Aurora was the only other awake, she walked over.

"Aurora. I need to talk to you." Her voice was urgent. The woman with sleep deprivation looked up.

"What."

"We need to go somewhere private."

"...Okay." Aurora was a little reluctant at first, but decided that she could fend for herself if anything were to happen. Y'know like, being pushed off the cliff. Both women traveld a small ways down the path they had arrived from and turned a sharp corner. Raine stopped and crossed her arms. She got straight to the point.

"Both Kratos and I have decided both you and Delia need to stay in Asgard."

The one listening paled, then went red. "What?" Her voice was low.

"You and Delia need to leave."

"Why?"

Raine tsked. "I think you know why."

"I don't. Please, enlighten me." She mimicked the Professor's position and folded her arms over her chest.

"Both you and her have been holding us back."

Aurora's eyebrow raised in confusion. "How?"

"Simple," She started. "You have been injured countless times and had to have been carried by Kratos, along with others avoiding our group. Delia, is a child who knows nothing about combat. All she accopmlishes in is wearing down our supplies."

"Delia doesn't have a home!" The woman's face grew redder than it already was. "Surely you won't deny the child a place in the group?!"

"If it is weakining us then yes, we would have to."

"We who?" Her head was tilted downwards giving the appearance of an assasin who was caught by one person. No witnesses were around, and it would be so pleasureable to kill them on the spot.

To bad that person was your target and had to be brought back alive.

"We being Kratos and me." She stated.

"...You know what? I don't have half a mind to listen to you or that man anymore. Both of you, quite frankly, piss me off."

"Then that's that. You shall leave at Asgard. No ifs ands or buts about it." The teacher's chin lifted a little in conclusion.

Aurora bit the inside of her lip before answering. "And since when did you make the desicions?"

"Since I was marked as Colette's care-taker." A sly smile of victory adorned her lips. The swords-woman huffed in frustration as she turned to walk back to camp. Raine watched her slumoed figure in pleasure. Fianlly, that blind was taken care of.

* * *

"Are you okay Aurora?" Delia looked up to her somewhat adoptive mother. The morning had ensued without much fanfare. Not even any antics from Lloyd or Genis were comitted. That was a surprise. The only reason for lack of excitement was one thing. Tension. It was so thick, the children could feel it without actually knowing what was wrong. Ice, insted of blood, seemed to run through their viens, sometimes leaking out through balled up fists. Delia swallowed nervously when Aurora didn't answer. "Aurora..." She squeaked. The older woman looked down to her. Her facial expression caused the girl to flinch.

"Yes?" That tone was unusually dull for Aurora.

"A-Are you okay?" A hint of fear could be marked in her eyes. Black strands of hair fell into her sight, but she dare not move her hand since Aurora had a death grip on it.

"Yes, I am quite fine."

"Okay..." Her feet had that feeling as if you were about to step off a cliff, which was very possible considering that's what they were on. Delia had been much like Aurora was the other day. The slowing of progression seemed quite obvious. This led the small girl to be self-conscience, making her pace quicken with each step. Hours went on when finally the rocky terrain came to an end.

"Oh my god!" Lloyd shouted, a shocked expression on his face.

"What?!" Colette ran to his side.

"It's a miracle!"

Genis smirked. "You can actually comprehend a third grade book?"

The teen glared sideways at his friend. "Way to take the fun out of everything." He pouted.

"Lloyd."

"Yeah Colette?"

"What was it?"

"What was- oh! Right!" He took a deep breath. Genis scrunched up his brows wearily and slowly put his hands over his ears. Colette cocked her head in confusion. The red clad boy kept inhaling, and inhaling, and inhaling until... "NONHIGH LAAAAAND!!!!!"

The mage raised an eyebrow. "Nonhigh? Oh well, guess we can give up on the book thing eh?" Lloyd went as red as his shirt.

"Shut up Genis!"

The group continued for a few minutes until Asguard was in sight. Delia's hand was beginning to ache from circulation problems.

"A-Aurora."

"Yes Delia?"

"M-My hand hurts."

The woman apologized and released her hand. "I apologize."

"It's okay." She rubbed the pain out of her hand.

* * *

A stone arch with engravings on it made up the gate to Asgard. Raine's eyes seemed to widen immediately. The lust in them was the unmistakable craze of "Ruin Mania". Genis paled when he looked to his sibling.

"Raine?" He asked, uneasy.

"Yes Genis?" Her hungry eyes never left the arch.

"We're going now."

"Okay." Her voice was breathy as she followed the group. Her head was following the arch the whole time, causing her head to go all the way back to drink in its sight as long as it could. When she looked forward, her mouth went agape in awe. Tons of ancient tunnels filled the carved moutainside. It was most definitely a scholars paradise. If only those tourists weren't crowding the view. Aurora's ears went back in unease. Large towns were particularly harsh. More people to judge her.

"Alright." Kratos started. "We should go seperate ways in search of clues to the next seal. In two hours we will meet over there." He pointed to a giant staicase that held at least one-hundred steps. The black tops of pillars were peeking over the edge of the summit. Raine quickly agreed and darted towards the tunnels, giggling manaically as she went. Strange stares followed her path.

"Ge-"

"Don't start." The mage sighed and followed his sister. Strands of hair were starting to deflate.

"Ooh! A puppy!" Colette hopped in place. "C'mon Lloyd!" She grabbed the unsuspecting teen by the hand and drug him off to wherever it was cute furry animals were.

"Take this and go get reservations at the inn." Kratos handed the blind girl a few hundred gald. Aurora took Delia by the hand again and motioned for her to lead the way. She could hear the hurtful murmurs of the public's outrageous accusations from 'demon' to 'child labor' seeing as Delia was leading the way. Men and women alike bumped into constantly just trying to disrupt her stride. Kids would look at the small girl strangely and whisper into each others ears. Tears filled the black haired girl's eyes at thier snide comments. Her tiny hands grasped the inn door's handle and forced it open. Aurora put on a stern face and approaced the desk with authority.

"Four rooms please." She slammed the gald forcefully on the desk. A bone thin man looked up from a book a frowned.

"Sorry, we don't room your kind." He replied bluntly and went back to his reading.

"I think that's the wrong answer." Her voice was menacing.

"Look." He closed the book and glared at her. "If I put you up for the night, it'll look bad on my part." His eyes started to go back to his book, but stopped. "Wait." He mused.

"What?" She snapped.

"I know you. Well that changes things." He folded his hands. "You know, with your experience, there _are _other means of payment." A suggestive smile spread on his lips.

Aurora went pale and took her hand from Delia's. With one quick motion she pushed the ear on the opposite side of the girls head, and pushed the other into her side. The child's eyes went wide in surprise and tried to pull away from her in an instinctive action. The woman pushed her closer in response. "Please, there are children present."

The man sighed. "Fine." He lowered his voice to a whisper. "How about you just _strip-_" She smacked the man across the face, grabbing the attention of everyone in the room and turned around. Wearily, she released Delia from her side.

"Let's find a different inn Delia." She announced. Delia's face contorted in fear. Aurora had never acted like this. But, she did as she was told and left the not-so-child-friendly inn. The small girl leading Aurora searched frantically for a different inn. The outside wasn't so pleasant. A small wooden inn caught her eye and she practically drug the woman to it. On thier eay, a man spat next to her. She looked at him, confused. He sneered and left on his way.

The next inn was a little more comfortable. A wrinkled old woman sat at the desk. She was reluctant on giving them the rooms, but after seeing the look in Delia's big green eyes, she agreed. Aurora thanked her and went to the check the room. A quiant room with two beds and a nightstand inbetween. She started to walk forward when something wet hit her hand. Her face scrunched up in confusion when Delia sniffed.

"Delia?" She asked.

"Yeah." The strain in the girl's voice was apparent. Aurora knelt beside her.

"Are you crying?"

"N-No!" Her voice cracked.

"Delia." She sighed.

"..."

"Delia?" She asked. "Please talk to me."

"A-Are you mad at me?"

Aurora's eyebrows went up in surprise. "Delia! Of course not. Why would I- why would you think that?!."

"You j-just seemed to be m-mad all day. Your face was angry a-and you hurt my h-hand and you yelled at that m-man" She hiccuped.

"Oh Delia. I'm so sorry." She put her hands on the girl's shoulders. "That's not why I'm mad Delia. I wouldn't... _I couldn't_ be mad at you. Ever."

The girl's green orbs looked up. "Ever?" She asked skeptically.

"Ever." Aurora smiled. Delia sniffled and smiled back. Her arms went around the woman's neck and the woman put her arms around her. She rubbed the child's back soothingly a little bit before patting it. "Okay." She leaned back. "Let's go join the others shall we?" Delia nodded and took her hand.

* * *

Raine, after learning that the staris led to an ancient stone dais, was waiting impatiently with the others for Delia and Aurora. A blue and a red dot appeared through the crownd and hurried up to them.

"Sorry we're late." Aurora panted. "We got a little sidetracked." Raine's icy blue eyes glared at her skeptically, but didn't have much time to do it. Her instincs kicked in at once and she was up those stairs in a flash. Genis sighed and looked to the massive flight of stairs.

"If only we had Raine's energy."

"Yeah no kidding." Lloyd covered his eyes with his hands to block out the sun when he looked up. What took Raine ten seconds to get up, took the res ten minutes. Lloyd and Genis tripped on the last step and face-planted. "Legs numb. Can't move." Lloyd's voice was muffled by the ground.

"Need to get water..., and moving platform." Genis panted.

"Yay! We're here!" Colette cheered and hopped over the guys.

"How can she be so hyper?" The red clad teen asked in envy.

"It's Colette remember."

"Oh yeah."

Delia, halfway, had climbed onto Aurora's back. Something was bothering her legs, but she didn't know what. It felt like stings. Kraots wasn't affected by the walk whatsoever and nonchalantly stepped over the crumpled figures of Genis and Lloyd.

"Ooooohh..." Raine moaned in delight. "It's fantastic! Look at the intricate carvings! They must have some connection to the drawings inside the tunnels! Oh! Feel the surface! So smooth! Wonderous! WONDEROUS! Lloyd! Pop quiz! When was this built?"

Lloyd groaned through the dirt. "Nugh, the, the something something." He waved a hand carelesly in the air. Raien facepalmed.

"No Lloyd. It's the Balacruf Dynasty! Balacruf Dynasty! How hard is it to remember?!?!"

"Plenty." He replied as he stood up and decided to leave, not wanting a lecture on that Blarufc Nasty somethin or another. His legs and head were just too tired to endure it. So, he snuck around the dais to relax on the other side. Delia looked over curiously and slid off of Aurora's back.

"I'll be right back Aurora." She announced. The woman nodded and sat down. Delia smiled and darted after the teen. "HIII mister wanted guy!" She rounded the corner where Lloyd had caught two trouble makers in there tracks.

"Crap Harley! I told you this was a bad idea." Said a skinny blunette. His glasses seemed to be loose and constantly sliding down his nose. A red-headed guy who was a little more built glared at him.

"But if we _don't_ do this, Aisha will be sacrificed! Do you want that Linar?" He snapped.

"N-No! Of course not."

"Then turn it on!"

"But those kids!"

"Forget about them, blow up the darn dais already!"

_Ding!_ That did it. Raine's face went blood red as she sped over the dais to the boys. "Blow up the dais?" She seethed. Both of the guys went ghostly white.

"N- we were jus- meep!" Linar tried to form a coherent sentence.

"Hey lady! We have a perfectly good explination for why-" Harley began. Raine shook her head and jumped off the dais, managing to flip the swith on the explosives. All of the spectators, including Lloyd and Delia's jaws dropped.

"Listen here. You were just about to destroy a priceless piece of history!" She ranted, oblivious to the chaos she had just started.

"Lady!" Harley tried to warn her.

"THIS IS IRREPLACABLE!"

"Raine..." Lloyd voiced his concern.

"Lloyd, if you have any questions you can ask them afterwards." Now, she turned to the red head and started a smackdown. Literaly. Delia tapped the furious woman's shoulder.

"R-Raine?"

"What Delia?!?!" She snapped. The girl flinched.

"The thing is going to blow!" Linar shouted. The Professor went pale.

"How do you stop it?" Lloyd panicked.

"You can't!" Linar shouted.

"It's the unstoppable "Breaker!" Harley proudly announced. The regeneration group portion gaped.

"Run!" Delia said. All of them scrambled to the other side of the dais. The girl tried to keep up with the adults, but tripped over the edge of the stone slab. She screamed for help. Lloyd turned around and picked her up under his arm.

"Time to go." He said and zoomed around the back to the front.

Three...

Two...

One...

Ka-Boom! The teen made it just in time. He was breathing heavily after turning the corner where everyone was waiting for him. "W-We made it." He announced.

"I don't feel good..." Delia croaked. Her face was pale and was dripping with cold sweat. Lloyd was holding her by the stomcach and after running with her like that, it didn't feel to well. Before the unfortunate teen had a chance to put her down, she threw up her breakfast on his shoe. Her body shivered with an aftershock.

"Gah!" Lloyd about dropped her.

"S-Sorry." She moaned. He quickly set her down for fear she would adorn him with more half-way digested food. While that was going on, Harley and Linar stared in disbelief at the dais. Not even a scratch could be found on it's smooth surface.

"No frickin way!" The red-head shouted. "It was supposed to be the unstoppable "Breaker!"

"Now Aisha will be sacrificed..." Linar looked at his feet. A tear slid down the corner of his eye.

They had no idea how lucky they were with what happened next. Raine's hand's were shaking with a thirst for blood. She advanced upon the two unsuspecting boys when the Asgard government appeared.

"Hey! Tresspassing here is forbidden!"

"Uh-oh." Aurora mused. All the children, including Aurora, Harely, and Linar hi-tailed it outta there.

"I am sorry." Kratos walked past them with the rest.

"But, I'm a scholar!" Raine shouted.

"Yes. And the last scholar messed with the dais and screwed up our life." The one in charge glared. Raine returned it with ferocity, but obeyed and left the dais. "Darn youngins." The man continued to glare after them.

* * *

The group followed Harely and Linar back to thier house. When they burst in, they were greeted by a blue haired, beautiful girl that looked to be Linar's sister.

"Oh my! What happened?" She asked.

"They tried to destroy the dais." Lloyd pointed an acusing finger at the teenage boys.

"Harley, Linar." She sounded exasperated.

"But Aisha!" Harely stepped forward.

"We didn't even dent it..." Linar frowned.

"Good." The girl named Aisha nodded.

"Aisha!"

By now the adults had caught up.

"Harely. If I don't sacrifice myself, everyone will suffer!" Her voice grew.

"Woah woah woah! What's this about a sacrifice?" Genis asked. The three just then seemed to realize thier presence.

"Get out!" Harley snapped. Everyone flinched.

"Harley, quiet. This is MY house." She must have had him on a tight leash because he obeyed instantly.

Linar decided to explain. "A scholar came just a few weeks ago to study the dais. Now, instead of just dancing on the dais annually, the guardian of the seal is asking for young women as sacrifices. This year... they picked Aisha..."

"Wait! Seal?" Raine asked.

"Yeah, so?" Harley glared.

"What if I went in Aisha's place?" She suggested.

"Raine!" Genis cried

"Professor!" Lloyd and Colette joined her panicked brother.

Raine smiled and turned to them. "But what if this is the next seal? We could get into then." The look in her eyes betrayed her logic. Clearly, all she wanted to do was have some personal time with the dais.

"Right!" Colette realized what she was saying, but not what she was showing. The teacher turned to the three others again.

"When's the ritual?" She asked.

Harley smiled. "Tonight."

* * *

Everyone crowded around the black dais. What interseted people in public executions was a mystery. Raine was garbed in a beige and brown wool suit with a cap. Her rod was held at arms length, ready to begin at any moment. When the crowd quieted down, she began. In her mind, she was in total bliss. Today, she got to get rid of the cripple and the child, they found the seal, and she got to study the ruins up close and personal. A huge smiled curved her lips as she preformed the simple 'dance' of walking to each of the dots on the platform, and tap them with her rod. Once she was finished, they glowed a bright green.

A light flashed and a large lizard-wasp creature appeared in the middle of the insignia. Colette's eye's widened.

"Raine! That's not the seal!" She pulled out her chakrams lightening fast and flew on the dais. Her group all did the same with thier respective weapons and joined Raine in a battle. This creature meant business. It's attacks were swift and hard to dodge. Even Kratos had trouble. In ten seconds, Genis and Colette were resting against one of the pillars. Delia was antsy on the sidelines. Why couldn't she help too?

Kratos, Aurora, and Lloyd were having a hard time landing a hit on it. The teen was knocked back against a pillar by the monster's blade tail. The impact knocked him out. Raine had her rod out, casting healing spells left and right, yet it still seemed useless. Miraculously, the monster knocked Kratos way off the dais one way and his sword off the other. Then, it turned to Raine. She cowered a little before it. The tail of the thing swiped at her and knocked away her rod. Completely vulnerable, she screamed for help.

Aurora was frozen. Heat flared in her chest. She didn't want to save Raine in the least bit. She wasn't so grateful least time so, why help her now. But, then again, everyone else was yelling at her to do it, and Genis would be crushed without his sister. Her desicion came a split second too late.

"AH!" Delia had jumped in front of the Professor, taking the hit head on. The blade sliced right below her chest and above her stomach, knocking her back into Raine. Aurora gasped and was now frozen with fear insted of indesicion. The teacher was casting healing spells on Delia, healing the cut somewhat.

Kratos finally returned with his sword in hand and cut the monster down. Lloyd had regained conscieness and flocked around Delia along with Genis and Colette. Eyebrows way up and tears streaming down her face, Aurora began to approach the bleeding girl.

"Why did you not help!" Kratos snapped.

Genis looked to the swords woman. "You just... sat there."

"What happened?" Colette asked.

"This," Raine started. "Is why you need to stay behind."

That cut deeply. Very deeply. The brunette backed away slowly, stuttering in disbelief. Reality in all its glory sunk in. The hot tears flowed quicker and in increasing frequency. Squeaks came from the back of her throat. She shook her head and left the dais for the inn. Her head was spinning so badly, she might as well have been drunk. The two feet carrying her would catch and trip on anything possible. Her hands tried furiously to wipe away the wet stains on her face. The only person who thought to trial her,

...was Kratos.

* * *

Me: Yeah, you've been complaining about lack of romance, well, you'll have to wait! That's right! A cliffie!!! Genis, what's today?

Genis: Uh... Wensday.

Me: DARN!

Genis: What?

Me: I can update tomorrow. Maybe...

Genis: I don't think the readers like where this is going.

Me: Maybe I could just wait 'til Sunday!

Genis: ...There's that look again.

Me: Unless... *Strokes chin* I get reviews! Especially long ones! You guys don't know how much a long review means to a writer. Sure, the 'Great story, keep it up's are okay but, I feel you actually care when you take the time to write about this.

Genis: That, and you're a pathetic loser who's only company is the iPod.

Me: WAH! I just want a long review... Is that too much to ask for?

Genis: Yeah, it probably is.

Me: ...sad face...

Genis: You use that a lot.

Me: It's my quote! Review pwease! And make it loooooooooooong pwease! :D


	21. Chapter 20

Me: Hello again readers! I have come to the conclusion that an writer must be very patient. I'm going against my authoress instincts to bring you another chapter of 'Pain Neverending' because Im either just as or more excited to see what happens as you are! This is all being pulled out of thin air so, I really have no clue to what's going to happen next. I guess that's alright though. It gives the reviewers some wiggle room for thier ideas.

Genis: Speaking of which, you have four reviews.

Me: And they were all long! Yaysees! :D Thanks to Rushingriver, ShadowVDP, Luzelle, and little_pocketmouse for all of their support! You rock guys! Have some ice cream! ...*sniffles* I'm so happy!!

Genis: Why are girls so emotional?

Me: 'Cause we're more interesting, as nature dictates.

Genis: Guys are interesting too.

Me: Not really. They only have one thing on their minds.

Genis: What? S-

Me: SUSH! This is a T-rated fic remember?

Genis: Well, Aurora's past delves a little out of the way of T-rated.

Me: True... Maybe I should change it to M-rated. Then again, if mom found out about this account, she'd have my head for writing an M-rated fic.

Genis: Well, you wanna write _that chapter_ anyways.

Me: o.o' (////)

Genis: So why not change it?

Me: :( Well, that chapter's a looooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooong way off. Hehe...

Genis: But you think about it everyday.

Me: ...I hate you...so much...

Genis: Who's boring now?

Me: I don't think about it _all_ the time.

Genis: Right.

Me: Well then *cough* uh...Oh, if any of you have been wondering what happens to Aurora when she 'snaps', its called "Post Traumatic Stress Disorder". It's like having a flashback when a situation similar to a more scarring one occurs. With that said, on to chapter 20! Huzzah! I've noticed a trend going on with the stories, Aurora and Kratos's interactions are always at the beggining so, this chapter starts off with Delia! Chose a bad time to break my habit huh? XD You guys are going to hate me for this chapter...

* * *

Chapter 20: A Loss.

Drips of rain began to fall as girl's lifeless body lay on a silver headed half-elf's lap. Blood poured profusley out of the wound adorning her mid. Said half-elf was casting relentlessy upon the dying girl, but it did little to help. She was gettig paler by the second with blood loss. Her lips kept mouthing one word over and over.

"Aurora."

That was the first person she wanted to see before she died. She wasn't a complete idiot. This wound wasn't minor and most likely, she wasn't going to live through it. The tips of her fingers and toes began to go cold and numb as well as her nose. Her vision focused and blurred constantly with each pump of her heart. Warm blood was pouring over her and seemed to create a blanket that glowed eeriely in the night.

"Aurora."

She shook feverently causing the other three children crowding her to worry. A cold sweat broke out on her forehead, drenching her black bangs. It took an extreme amount of will to swallow saliva to keep her throat wet. Her eyes refused to close until they saw the person they longed for. Tears mixed with rain as she called her name.

"Aurora."

"She'll be here soon." The Chosen's soft soprano voice filled the girls head. Even at a low volume, it felt like symbols crashing right beside her head. A cold hand reached out and placed itself on her head. She flinched on contact. The healer looming above her leaned back so her muscles would ache less 'causing slivery moonlight to spill over the pale form know as Delia. Granted, a more scratched up Delia, but her all the same.

"Aurora."

"Kratos went to find her. She'll be back." A brunnette swordsman leaned over to block out the bright light again. Small whimpers emanted from the back of her throat. Why did she do this? Well, she knew why but, sometimes you have to question yourself.

"Lloyd. We need to take Delia to the inn immediately. Here." Raine lifted the girl from her blood soaked arms to Lloyd's. He grimaced at having to carry her, but did as he was told. Trying not to disturb her too much, he ran to the inn with his teacher on his heels. Colette and Genis tagged along as well. They all burst through the inn door soaking wet from the rain. Thunder crashed as the heavy door swung itself close behind them. A trail was formed by the numerous feet traveling quickly down the halls.

The first room they rented seemed to be locked, so they tried the next one over. Colette, who had the key, started to fumble around with the lock. After a full thirty seconds, Raine just kicked it open. The teacher hurried over to the closest bed and stripped it of everything except for the actual bedding part. She motioned for Lloyd to set Delia down, and he did so. Her small body had soaked the bed as soon as she touched it.

"Genis." Raine called him.

"Y-Yeah sis?" He was trying his best not to make eye-contact with the bleeding girl. Her once dark green eyes had now lost their luster and the only emotion apparent in them was abandonment. Chilling really.

"Go to the front desk and ask for a needle and some large thread. Now." She ordered.

He stood at attention and quickly obeyed. Colette was next to help. Raine helped her tie a small blanket tightly around the underside of the girl's undeveloped chest. She knew tournequits were normally used for different types of emergencies, but anything to lessen blood flow, if even a little, was helpful right now.

Her brother eventually found the needle and thread. As soon as Raine's hands were on it, she began working. It wasn't exactly the state of the art medical equipment for Sylvarant at the time, but it was all they had. Since her spells did nothing to close up the wound, she had to resort to messier tactics. Her hands quickly dug through a pack for an apple gel which she lathered the string with. Hopefully that would help with the pain.

She didn't tell the others, so they wouldn't panic, but this procedure wasn't going to do anything to help heal her. She was beyond that now. Too much internal bleeding. The only thing she could do was lessen the pain during the experience.

Delia's face twitched in discomfort as the healer began weaving the needle and thread in and out of her skin and muscle. Colette couldn't stand to watch, so she buried her face into Lloyd's shoulder. He himself, had to look away leaned his forehead against the top of her head, inhaling the scent of her sweet smelling hair. Genis started to tear up, so he sat down and closed his eyes as tight as they would go. His fingers crossed over themselves, willing the broken girl to live.

Raine finished up with the last stitch and cut the string. She tied the end in a knot so her work would not come undone.

"Lloyd." She looked over her shoulder at the cowering couple. Her eyes glazed over in sadness. Reluctantly, the teen looked up at her.

"W-What?" His voice was breathy.

"Please go fetch me a damp towel. I need to keep Delia clean."

He nodded sickly and darted out of the room as fast as he could. The smell of death could already be picked up. Once more, a bright flash of light, quickly followed by thunder caused Delia to flinch. Her caretaker looked to her. She gazed into space with glazed over eyes occasionally looking sideways for ant sight of Aurora. Her lips stayed parted most of the time and some blood would trickle down the corner of her mouth from time to time which Raine would wipe away gently with her thumb.

More lightening.

"Raine..." Delia's voice was remarkably hoarse. It sounded like her voice box had been put through a shredder. That is, if there were shredders in Sylvarant.

"Yes Delia?" Her voice was a whisper so as not to give the small, dying girl a headache.

"A-Aurora... where-" Fevered coughs began to rack her body, preventing her from speaking. The bed, now permanently dyed a dark shade of blood red, bounced at the sudden movement. The teacher quickly, yet gently, put a hand to her chest and pushed the girl back down.

"Shh. Kratos is gone to get Aurora. She'll be here." She cooed. In her mind, she had no idea where either of them were or if Kratos even left for that reason. But that didn't matter. All that mattered now was Delia's comfort as her life-light grew dimmer with each second. It was like an oil lamp that someone was dimming with agonizing slowness. Delia was now a bright paper white. If they could get her to walk around and moan, she could very easily pass as a ghost.

Of course, she would be a real one any second now.

"Got it." Lloyd called softly, waving a white withered towel in the air. His teacher nodded and took it from him quickly. She turned to Delia and gently dabbed the most wet spots first, then rubbing just a little harder in dried out places and managed to recieve pained whimpers from the girl. In the end, the towel was now like the bed in color, and Delia looked somewhat less gruesome. Her hand twitched a bit.

"A-Auror-a..." She shivered. "Au-Aurora..." She took inhaled deeply, and with one last breath, she tried in vain once more. Her thin hoarse voice crushed everyone's spirits as she forced out her last word.

"Aur-or-a..."

A pair of once bright green eyes, now dull with fear and hopelessness, closed one final time.

* * *

(Starts from beggining except with Aurora and Kratos.)

Aurora dashed away from it all. Rain pelted her with the force of bullets, each one leaving a hole in her heart. Tears of self hatred streaked down the sides of her cheeks as they melted in with the rain drops. Her arms wrapped themselves around her with a vice grip and the nails dug into her sides like daggers. The tips of her ears were flat against her head now. Acid in her stomach began to rise up her throat, scorching the delicate tissue as it went. What the frick was wrong with her. Was it so hard to save someone right in front of you. Hate or not, she should've done something because it wasn't Raine who had to pay the price.

It was Delia.

Delia, the perky girl they all knew and loved. The girl that could make you smile at the smallest things. The girl with a voice so innocent, you wouldn't expect the things that she'd gone through. The girl _she_ was supposed to look after. The girl _she_ was supposed to protect.

But she failed.

Miserably.

Her heart pumped blood at an astounding rate, boosting her speed to almost superhuman. She wanted nothing more than ot run so fast that she could go back in time and do something about this. All she had to do, was hit the monster. It had been right in front of her with its back turned and preoccupied. Nothing could have stopped her from dealing a deadly blow except for herself. So why couldn't she do it? Huh? Why?

"Why?!" She screamed out loud. Her breaths were so short she was hyperventalating. Her mind started to get foggy as she barreled towards the inn. She thrust it open with all of her strength and headed to the first room she could open. She had no idea what she was doing. All her mind was telling her was to run. And run as fast as she could.

Kratos's own boots sloshed in the mud as he darted down the streets after her. What had gotten into her? It was like she's taken an adrenaline shot or something. He sighed in relief when she opened the inn door. At least now she was trapped. Everyone in the lobby stared strangely at both him. He dissmised them for the moment and followed the wet footsteps to Aurora's room. His hand cautiously gripped the doorknob and creaked it open. His angelic ears were immediately assulted by Aurora's pained cries. He quickly stepped in and shut the door so other guests would not feel the need to investigate.

She was a pitiful sight. He'd seen her at low times, but this was by far the worst condition yet. Her body was curled up on one of the beds. Her hands hid her face as she cried more than anybody had probably ever cried before. But he wasn't about to go easy on her.

"You need to keep it together." He stated. She jumped at his voice, not knowng his presence beforehand. Her eyebrows furrowed into a glare as more tears appeared from underneath her bandanna. The top of her lips curled into a snarl.

"Leave me the hell alone!" She cried.

"I cannot do that." He kept his calm.

She didn't. "I said LEAVE ME THE HELL ALONE!!!" Her body was stricken with coughs afterward.

"What were you thinking?" He advanced toward her, not remembering what happens when he does that. Still coughing, her expression morphed into one of fear as she 'snapped' again.

Except this time, it was a little more intense.

Her hands pushed herself off the bed and onto the hard floor. Kratos looked at her strangely before realizing what he'd just done. The tone of her voice was clearly different from the low, angry one she was using a minute ago.

"P-Please no! I wasn't running I swear!" Her head shook violently. "Don't kill me."

"Aurora." He stepped forward.

"Don't touch me!" She snapped, then gasped. "I-I mean! Please! I'll be good. Just no more clients. Please."

"Listen. It's not real." A few more steps.

She balled up her fists and shakingly rose to her feet. "N-NO!" She started to run for the door. "I'm leaving now!"

Kratos reached out and snatched her by the upper arm, pulling her back in front of him. She struggled against his grip, forcing him to use both hands on either side of her. "Aurora!" He called sternly. "Listen!"

Her struggles just became more violent and she started to scream bloody murder. "No Ryudo! I'm not your b- anymore!"

Kratos's eyes widened at the use of her language. Whatever this Ryudo did to her, it definetly wasn't pleasant. But the problem right now was how to quiet her down. Somebody would surely come by and hear her sometime or another. He took off one hand to put it over he mouth.

Bad move.

She squeezed free and ran for the door. He quickly stepped in front of her and locked the door. This time, he did the only thing he could do. He put one hand on the back of her head and one around her waist. With all of his strength he pressed her warm body against his chest. Her screams vibrated throughout his body, and her arms still tried to free themselves. But, with the lack of air, her breathing became quieter and her struggles less violent. She was now heaving for air. He wasn't sure if she was over the episode yet or just lacking in oxygen, but he wasn't about to find out.

They stood there.

And stood there.

And stood there until her arms folded up and her hands grabbed his shirt. She was over the episode now and anything familiar to this time would be heavenly. Even Kratos. That flashback was a particulalry nasty one she did not care to remember. Her hands gripped the front of his shirt as tight as they could and she pulled herself as close as she could get, burying her face in his chest. The top of her head barely reached the bottom of the first diamond on his outfit. Her nose was pressed inside the second one. She breathed in, and out slowly for a while. More tears came and went. He refused to admit it, but he actually enjoyed holding her. Warmth was one of the things he missed about being human.

Kratos didn't notice it, but he had begun to rock her back and forth. The gentle sway of their bodies wasn't anything close to how their insides were. His were confused and hers were just plain tore up. A bright flash of lightening went off, illuminating them for a second, then rumbled the inn with tunder.

Then Aurora realized something. Her head shot up.

"Delia!" She called out. Kratos blinked in surprise. He had forgotten all about Delia and her situation. He quickly unlocked the door and stepped outside when Lloyd bumped into him with a col towel in his hands. The teen realized what they wanted at once and led them to her.

* * *

"Delia!" Aurora's voice was filled with more pain than most real mothers could have. Hot, searing, tears streamed down her face at the sight of a bloodied and lifeless Delia. She ran over to her bed and practically collapsed on it. Her companions had been respectful and left.

"Delia!" She screamed again. Her arms wrapped themselves carefully around the tiny girl as she straightened up a little. The girl's head hung back like a rag doll's. Aurora shook her head, refusing to believe it. Much like Kratos did with her, she hugged Delia gently against her. She was cold.

Dead cold.

Small hiccuping whimpers jerked the woman's chest. She looked down and pressed her nose against Delia's forehead and began to rock her back and forth. A soft tune that she'd played for her the night she found out her father died found its way back to her sore throat and hummed it softly. She blinked as more tears fell from her face onto the child's.

"I'm sorry Delia..." She whispered. "I'm so sorry. I couldn't protect you..." Her bottom lip quivered. "Maybe I am just a worthless cripple." Her body shook in sorrow as she rocked the child some more. "No Delia. Please don't leave me."

A faint voice reached her ears. "I'm so-rry... Au-ror-a..."

* * *

Me: ...

Genis: ...

Me: Okay. This is the crossroads where Delia either stays or goes. YOU choose. I've had mixed reviews about her staying and going so to help with that confusion, I am putting up a poll. You can voice your concern in a review but it will NOT be counted. Unless, like, you're a non-member. Just make sure you put a definite yes or no.

Genis: You're so cruel.

Me: But, I had to...sad face...


	22. Chapter 21

Me: Well then, I feel so loved! XD Chatting with my WoW peeps made me happier and so did all these reviews... and my new LAPTOP!!!! I gots it for my birthday! (Which isn't today. And I'm not telling when it is, 'cause then creepy stalker peoples will come get me.) Sorry about that rant by the way. I'm being dead serious when I say this, but I think I have a mental disorder. Really. If you knew me personally, you'd think the same thing. Once, I cried in class in front of EVERYBODY... because I couldn't make a desicion on something in a poll. Then, when I take online quizzes and they ask something like 'What is your favorite color?' I spend minutes picking one because I wanna choose the correct one. And there's no correct answer to those questions! So you can see how my life goes. Heh... I'd tell you what I blame but I've bored you with my personal life long enough. Fanfiction is just my escape from life. Oh, and my friend wanted to be in here so, here he is. (He's my guild bro in WoW.)

Archshadow The Great Lock: You make my lil sis cry I'mma kick your %#$! (Seriously, he said that. You guys pop up a lot in my WoW conversations... Don't worry, I don't mention the names, just the comments. Oh, I mentioned some of them and he called you all 'baby killers'... lol... Well I thought it was funny...)

Me: Aw... thanks Arch.

Archshadow The Great Lock: No problem sis.

Me: Now, I will announce the results of the poll at the end of the chapter... YOU! Yeah you! I see that mouse straying towards the scroll bar. Uh-uh! Get your butt back here. Thanks to Tsuki no Megami Ookami Kurai, Luzelle, silk345, Rushingriver, ShadowVDP, and little_pocketmouse for all the support. Have you guys ever hugged me? No, no you haven't. So... c'mon, yeah y'know. Get a little closer. A little more. Ignore those people staring at you strangely. Few more inches. There that's it. Give me a hug. *Huggles* And for those of you who didn't go up to the screen and hug me well, fine then. Screw you!

...

You went back and hugged me didn't you? n.n I really hope you guys like this chapter. I put more thought into this than the others.

* * *

Chapter 21: I Think This One Should Be Titless For... Reasons...

"Is she gonna be okay Professor?" Colette's huge azure eyes glazed over as she looked to her teacher for some peace of mind. Raine sat across from the Chosen on a small bed similar to Delia's. Her own cerulean eyes met her's with the same hurt look. A lump caught in her throat. Colette shouldn't have to see a child die. But, that was inevitable. With a heavy conscience, she breathed out three famous words.

"I don't know."

And they were all false. There was a zero percent chance Delia would live through a wound that major. She was only seven years old, and with a cut that deep, she was surprised she didn't die on contact. She was a tough one for sure.

"Delia was so brave..." Colette mused. The glazed look left the Professor's eyes as she focused in on her charge. "She gave her life without thinking twice."

"Colette-"

The blonde stood up before she could continue. "I'm going to finsh this journey for Delia." She stated. Her chin was lifted a little bit in a confident posture. It deflated after a few seconds though. "Why does she have to die...?"

"Colette." Raine went and sat beside her. And arm found its way around the girl's neck and on her other shoulder. Colette leaned into Raine and curled up, trying to protect herself from the outside world. It was then, Raine understood just how horrible things were for Aurora. In fact, they both alike in someways. Both had no parents, no real home, both were forbidden to have children since she was a half-elf and Aurora had fertility problems, both took on the role of a parent for a motherless child,

and both of the children were bound to die...

It still didn't soften her up to the cripple.

* * *

"Hey Genis?" Lloyd was leaned over his knees as he sat on the floor. Genis, his friend, sat above him on one of the beds. His feet dangled just beside the teen's unruly brown hair. A lamp lit the room with a soft warm glow.

"Yeah Lloyd?" His voice was cracking with anticipation.

"D-Do you think..." He couldn't bring himself to say it.

"Yeah..." The mage held his head down. He was cursing his fingers that were crossed. They seemed to do nothing...

Lloyd glared down at his knees. Why couldn't he help. Gah, it was just... frustrating to not have the situation under control. He'd been able to save people in the human ranches, crowds and crowds of people he didn't know.

But he could never save the ones closer to him.

This was a person's life on the line. Delia's... He felt he could do anything to hear her voice again. In fact, there was something in his subconscience shouting,

"HIIII mister wanted guy!"

* * *

Kratos sat on the edge of his bed, thinking over the day's, well, yesterday's since midnight had already came and went, events. His legs made a ninety degree angle as they bent over the shape of the mattress, and his hands were bent inwards when he rested them on his knees. The dark red of his eyes stared down at his feet in contemplation. A few more bangs hung in his face than normal.

What would happen if Delia died? Probably push Aurora over the edge. It would be those last few inches needed to fall off the cliff. A grunt of disatisfaction erupted from his chest. It was going to be one hell of a time keeping her from the temptations of suicide.

But that would be hypocritic.

Its not like he hadn't tried himself. So many scars adorned his chest that you'd think it was a modern piece of abstract art, using a fleshy metal as material. The most recent scars were a blood red and earlier one's healed in a shiny silver tone due to the Aionis running through his bloodstream. The angelic heritage that had been injected in him made it harder to complete the task of dying.

The fire in the lamp beside him caused him to glow a pale shade of gold. One firey eyebrow twitched in frustration. That monster shouldn't have been that hard. Those many thousands of years ago, it wasn't that hard to seal him there. Was it the seclusion that allowed him to gain power? Whatever it was, the consequenses were dire. He had told Mithos it wouldn't last very long. Seems he was right.

As always. But Mithos would never take him seriously anymore. That hot-tempered drama queen of a kid he used to teach, was long gone. Now he was just an empty shell of hurt, hatred, and confusion.

Is that what Aurora would become like if she knew he killed her foster mother...?

* * *

"I'm so-rry... Au-ror-a..."

A cloudless downpour filled the night sky. Rain drops tapped on the window creating a genlte rythm. The woman leaned back to stare at the girl's face. Moonlight flooded over the two giving off an eerie glow. Both pale forms shone like diamonds in the dark room.

"D-Delia. Delia?" Aurora's face was a little brighter now. A teeny tiny sliver of hope streaked through her heart. The child used what little strength she had retained to grab Aurora's shirt and pull herself onto the woman's lap. Aurora gently tugged her closer to her body and looked down lovingly like a mother would with her daughter.

Delia's form shook as she forced out more words. "Will i-it be ok-kay...?"

Aurora's eyebrows went up. "Of course." She hugged her tightly, burying the childs face in her chest and resting her chin on Delia's head. "Everything's gonna be okay..." Her delicate finger's stroked the back of her hair soothingly.

"N-No" She coughed a little bit, staining a night blue tunic that was pressed against her face with blood.

"No?" Aurora frowned.

Delia nuzzled against the woman with her nose and came closer. "It-t hurts... It r-really hurts..."

"I-I'll make it stop Delia, but please. Stay."

"I w-wanna go s-see mommy..." Tears slipped down her pale face. "And daddy..."

Aurora trembled at her words. Her bandanna dampened as she cried herself, wetting the child's head.

"W-Will it be okay?" She asked again.

"..."

"Auro-r-a...?"

With each breath, it got harder to breathe. It was like someone had poked holes into Aurora's neck and all the air was leaking out. Her body shook with tremendous force. "Oh Delia! I'm so sorry! Delia!" Her arms tightened around the precious child. "I don't want you to go..."

"..."

"D-Delia?"

The body went limp in her arms. Her countenance froze into a twisted look of horror and sorrow. Slowly, she laid down on the bed with Delia still encased in her arms. Her white face was marked with red stripes from silent tears. Somwhere, deep inside, she was losing it. But, it wan't showing right now. Denial filled the gaps of the heart. She was still rocking Delia back and forth, as if she were just sleeping temporarily instead of forever. Her head shook slowly, not believing what just occured. No. It wasn't real. It was a nightmare. Please. A nightmare.

For once, a nightmare would be welcome.

You could wake up from nightmares.

Wake up to the new day.

Wake up to the squabble of Lloyd and Genis.

The voice of the Chosen, so sweet you can _hear_ the smile.

Logical planning by Kratos and Raine.

Delia... her perky disposistion... holding her hand... feeling like she was your own... the sense that you could be like something you could never achive...

Like a mother...

Why did it have to be real now?

The dead child's body was firmly pressed against her body, molding itself there. Aurora didn't want to let go. Ever. There were so many things that she should have done for and with Delia. Things she wouldn't get to do now.

And why?

Because she was consumed by hatred. The thoughts that ran through her mind that fateful day were clouded by the irrational emotion known as hate. But it's so powerful. Enough so that it turns something wonderful into an evil creature. And so easily too, because it felt good to hate.

But hate lies.

Hate hurts.

Hate backstabs.

Hate kills...

The ones closest to you...

* * *

Aurora laid there the whole night, clutching Delia to her. An emotionless expression was frozen on her face. Raine had already made plans for the local doctor to come and take Delia away. The woman could hear the two disscussing the future of the corpse she was holding. Loose tears fell down her cheeks without her having to blink. But she was still deep in denial.

Delia was still alive. Yeah... just, sleeping. And she was very cold. They just had to leave her here because she was sick, that's all...

But it was only a facade created in her mind's eye. Her body, like most of the night, still rocked back and forth in an effort to comfort the dead child as well as herself. Every so often you could hear her chant a mantra of soft 'No's.' and 'Shh's'. Her compainoins would look on in pity at the sorry state she'd taken to. The door clicked softly as the doctor and Raine walked in. The nurse was skinny with green hair and red eyes. She looked on the scene in disgust. A cripple and a dead child. Oh, joy...

Despite her annoyed outlook, she put on a nice face and spoke softly. "Dearie, we've got to take the girl now."

Aurora sat there, motionless, still clutching the child like there was no tomorrow, and for her, there might not be.

"Dearie," The woman repeated impatiently. "Please get off the child."

If Aurora had eyes to show, they'd be the icing on the cake. The dark, watery irises would put on a look so glassy and far away, you'd think her body didn't posses a soul anymore.

"Lady." The woman was glaring now.

Raine stepped up from behind. "We might have to take her off usuing force."

Miss nurse lady gave the woman a 'You can't be serious' look. "I am not toughing that... _thing_." She stated.

Raine huffed. "Fine then. Stay there." Her boots clicked and clacked as she made her way to a different room. She stopped three doors down and knocked on the door. Kratos cautiously opened it. When he saw it was the Professor he widened it a bit.

"What?" He asked.

"We have a situation." The woman crossed her arms.

"And that would be?"

"Come and see for yourself." She shrugged. He nodded and followed her to the room with the clingy Aurora, still clinging on. He frowned in disappointment. She was worse off than he thought.

"And how am I to help?" He asked, brows furrowing together.

"Please get that thing off my patient." The aggravated nurse pointed a bony finger at the two. His boots creaked the wooden floorboards as he walked over to the opposite side of the bed.

"Her name is Aurora." He announced.

The nurse pft'ed and crossed her arms. "Why should I care what that wretch's name is?"

Kratos shook his head and began to peel Aurora off the child in her arms. He grabbed one arm and started to pull. The woman scrunched up her face and clung tighter to the girl. The man's face twisted in frustration. This was going to be more difficult than he thought. He gripped her arm again and yanked a little harder than last time managing to pull it off. The rest was simpler to do, and with each limb removed, the easier it became. Soon, Aurora was just grabbing at air, more tears staining her skin. Kratos had to restrain her much like he had the night before, which didn't make Raine too happy at all.

Maybe she should start being the damsel in distress. If only it were her type...

The nurse sighed in relief. She reached out for Delia and barely touched her.

"Get away from her!" Aurora snapped out of her state of lifelessness and jumped out of Kratos's arms. (Much to his dismay.) The nurse stepped back in shock. "You have no right to touch her witch. Get away!" You could almost see fangs in Aurora's mouth.

"I'm being paid to take her so I'm going to." The woman put her hands on her hips defiantly. A low growl emmited from the swordswoman's throat.

"I said get away..."

"Aurora." Kratos took her shoulder and pulled her back. "Delia is gone. You must keep going."

Delia is gone.

Forever.

And she had to keep going.

Without her.

Aurora froze. All feeling left her body and she fell to her knees lifelessly causing everyone to jump. That expressionless face appeared again as her head looked down at the floor. Her arms hung limply at her sides, curling up at the thighs. She sat there like a rag doll. The nurse sneered and picked up Delia without much care and slung her over her shoulder. Aurora went numb with loss. Her bottom lip quivered relentlessly. She really was gone...

* * *

The sky was still a dark purple when the group headed on. The kids tried to keep a fair distance away from their lifeless companion. She lagged in the back, dragging her feet making streaks in the dirt, more like mud, path. Her mind was slowed to a crawl with thoughts. Every word took a total of ten seconds to be completely comprehended. Saliva would come scarcely and not do anything to wet her throat. She choked whenever she tried to speak.

Colette looked over her shoulder at the living dead girl. Tears filled her bright blue eyes as she took Lloyd's hand for comfort. The teen sqeezed it soothingly and pulled her a little closer. Genis swallowed nervously and walked further up to hold Raine's hand. Kratos could feel the strong sense of tension as dry thunder rolled through the fields. He tried to walk quicker so as to avoid the coming storm. It seemed impossible but they could always try. If they didn't make it, which was most likely, he kept his eye on a grove of trees far ahead.

A few more hours of walking and the sky became very angry. Brighter flashes of lightening shot down to the ground instead of from cloud to cloud, and the thunder almost shook the earth beneath them. It was pointless going to the HoS now, so Kratos led them to the patch of trees. It was tiny, but fit all of them. A little too snugly, but it was better than no protection. Aurora took a spot nearest the middle, curling up into a pitiful ball of sorrow. The rest took up posts near the outside. It would've been useless to light a fire so they kept each other warm with body heat. Colette leaned daintily against Lloyd and Genis snuggled up with his sister. Kratos sat in a tree keeping watvh for the night.

Thoughts of Delia ran through Aurora's mind. Her voice, her laugh, her tiny hands that would cling to her when she needed comfort. The woman had become so very attatched in a short amount of time. She had gotten so close, it felt like a part of her died with Delia.

The will to be a mother.

* * *

It was white. Really white. A white so bright it could be called blank. Delia looked around the strange room, covering her eyes since the white was so intense.

"Hello?" She called. "Hello?" Her eyes scanned the blank space for any signs of life. "Am I in heaven?"

"Delia!"

The girl spun around to the direction of the voice. A black haired woman with dark brown eyes looked lovingly towards her. Her eyes widened in surprise.

"M-Mommy!" Her little legs propelled her forward as fast as they could, sending her flying into her mother's arms. "M-Momma! I love you! Don't leave me again!" She pressed her face into the woman's chest.

"Hey short stuff!" A deeper voice called. Delia's head shot up.

"Daddy?" She asked.

"How'd you know?" A pair of strong arms wrapped around them both in a gentle, but loving embrace. "Hey little girl. I missed you."

The child's head turned to face a pair of eyes that mimicked her own and the bright white hair of her father. "Daddy!" She beamed and leapt to his neck, resting her head on it. "You went away..."

"I'm sorry." He sqeezed her some.

"It's okay. A woman found me who-..." The girl frowned.

"Delia?" Her mother asked. "Something wrong honey?"

Delia smiled again and shook her head. "Nope. I'm okay." She settled herself inbetween them both. "Where are we?"

"This is the gateway to the afterlife." Her father announced.

Her mother pulled her closer. "There's someone who can help you Delia."

"We know about Aurora."

"We're very grateful she took you in."

"And someone here has a favor to spare."

"And they want to revive you Delia." Her mother nuzzled her head. "Someone here cares about Aurora very much and she wants you to live. You made Aurora very happy. But, all we care about is _your_ happiness baby."

The white haired man pressed his cheek againste the top of his wife's head. "Delia, it's your choice. We want you to live a full and happy life. As much as I'm happy to see you, you don't belong here." He patted her head. "But it's your desicion."

"Delia. There's so much to live for. Our lives were short, but that doesn't mean we didn't enjoy them. All we want is for you to live and find happiness. This is the best thing we could ever wish for you. Second chances at life are impossible to get, but I'm so glad miracles occur."

"..." Delia sat there confused. She was with her parents again but, Aurora... Her life was over... This was a once in a lifetime offer, and she would always die eventually... "M-Momma. Daddy."

"Yes." They answered simultaneously, the vibrations of their chests matching in rythm and harmony. Delia relished in past memories of her parents for a moment. Small things like minute squabbles, pecks on the cheek, her father catching her when she barreled through the door, her mother baking the sweetest things for her to eat, her family sitting on one chair, mother in her father's lap and her in her mother's. All those things, right here at her fingertips. She answered.

"I wanna go back?" Both her parents hugged her tightly one last time.

"Okay then." Her father smiled wistfully.

"I'll get her. Hello?" Her mother called.

"Yes?" Another woman's voice entered the conversation. "Are you ready Delia?" The girl nodded wearily, not knowing where the voice was coming from. "Alright then." The mysterious voice started chanting in an ancient tongue. Delia could feel herself being pulled through dimensions, then remembered something. As her bidy rose into the air, she called to her parents.

"Mommy! Daddy?"

"Yes sweetie?" Her mother called.

"I lost my first tooth!"

Her mother chuckled and her father out two finger in his mouth, whistling as loud as he could. Delia giggled at her father's antics and closed her eyes. She knew exactly what to do when she got back to Sylvarant.

Tell Aurora about her tooth.

* * *

The storm became more violent as Aurora waited,

and waited,

and waited for the familiar sounds of soft snores coming from Delia. They never came, and never would. Sitting there, thinking, didn't help matters. Her breathing became more labored as time went on, Kratos taking note of it. She started shaking. The stage had come where the facts of life sunk in. Little Delia, the girl she had come to love, was never going to see her again. Tears began streaming down her face, more rapid than when she felt Delia's body go limp in her arms. Her lips quivered tremendously, barely holding back pained cries. She huffed and shot to her feet, then followed her instincts.

And her instincs again, were telling her to run. She didn't get far though, this time, Kratos caught her.

"NO!" She shrieked. "NO! Please! No!" She tried relentlessly to break free from his grip. Screams of pain mixed with the crashing thunder. When she stopped for a breather, she collapsed and easily slid through Kratos's grip. She laid there, completely broken. Her body was racked with sobs and the heap of her would jerk violently with each whimper. Profanities would sometimes escape the dried out lips of her mouth, and on top of all that, she shook like someone was thrashing her around.

Kratos frowned at her and bent down. His arms sild underneath her's and pulled her into a standing posistion. After making sure she was completely upright, he let her go. She collapsed again and let out an inhuman shriek of agony. He flinched and had to resist the urge to cover his ears. He still remembered how he was when he lost his family. He knew that pain she was feeling, so he left her to it. Being alone helped.

He paced down the dirt path trying to distract himself from her. It was almost useless until he saw something fall in the distance.

Then the heaven's unleashed their torrent.

* * *

Delia awoke with a white sheet covering her face. Her brows furrowed as she pushed the linen off and sat up. Smells of dead bodies assaulted her nose causing her to gag. She had to get out, and fast. Her legs swung out of the gurney she was on and darted towards the nearest exit. When her pale body barreled through there, everyone screamed "Zombie." She ignored them and headed straight for the inn. The lady at the desk looked at her and gasped in recognition.

"By the goddess! You're alive!" She yelled. Delia frowned at the statement but asked her the question anyways.

"Where are my friends?" She asked.

The receptionist stared at her sympathetically. "Hon, your friends left."

Delia nodded and left quickly. The woman shouted for her to stop, that the storm was too bad, but she didn't listen. All she wanted was to see Aurora again.

Her feet pounded against the worn out streaks of Aurora's footsteps. Her chest rose and fell rapidly, trying to keep oxygen in the bloodstream. Groans of pain emitted from her chest due to the muscles she was stretching. The thunder crashed loudly, hurting her sensitive ears and giving her a headache. How much longer? This was tiring. Now, she wanted sleep, but it was too cold for that now. With an extreme amount of will and determination propelling her forward, she might make it.

It took hours for Delia to get even close the the campsite. Her throat was dry from breathing through her mouth and her eyes stung from the wild winds. Strands of black hair flew into and out of her face, catching on her lips from time to time. She would push them away messily and keep running. Soon, her legs began to feel like mush. The power she once had was drained fully. Her hand dug ni her pocket for that hard little square, and found it. Satisfied, she collapsed in the road for a nap.

And the rain poured.

* * *

It didn't take long for Kratos to find the passed out girl. He nudged her with his foot, recieving a small groan as an answer. He frowned and scooped her up with little effort. How was she alive? No child could have survived that wound. Could they?

The only thing he cared about now, was that Aurora would be happy.

Why did he care?

Not even he knew.

The small, drenched girl blinked her eyes open. "W-Who are you?" She asked groggily. He looked down at her with his fire eyes.

"Scary man." He stated. The girl went pale and started to sweat nervously. He wasn't supposed to know he was scary. Noticing her discomfort, Kratos continued. "I've gotten that from more than you."

She sighed a little and relaxed a little. "Where are we going?"

"You mean where are we. Here." He set her down a few feet from the mourning woman. Delia gasped at the sight. Her hair was wet with rain, her body just looked like a heap of clothes, tears mixed with rain, and her body jerked from time to time. Delia was too afraid to get any closer so Kratos took the initiative. He knelt beside her and picked the woman up. She was still sobbing when he gently sat down, with her in his lap, next to Delia. The girl flinched at her guardian's behavior. She looked to the mercenary for approval.

He nodded.

Cautiously, Delia walked closer to the pair and her tiny arms wrapped around Aurora. The woman choked on a sob and looked up.

"Genis?" She asked.

"Aurora." Delia climed into her lap. Aurora's tears now held a different emotion. Drops of joy ran down her face instead of unending pain as she clung to Delia like a tick. Her nose rubbed itself against the top of the girl's black head and the child did the same with her's except, she nuzzled her chest.

"Delia! Oh Delia. I'm so sorry. Delia." Aurora sobbed and hugged the girl tightly. Along with Delia, that part of her, the one of a mother, was revived. She swallowed so her throat would become a little more wet.

"Aurora!" Delia leaned back and took the square out of her pocket. Aurora cocked her head curiously as the girl placed the object in her hand. "I lost my tooth!"

The woman smiled so wide, Kratos could swear it would freeze that way. He subconciously held her tighter as she cuddled with Delia in his lap. Aurora leaned her head against Delia's. Her hand curled around the tooth.

"I'll keep it forever."

"Forever?"

"And ever."

* * *

Me: This was a good end to a good day! I had a little break during this and had THE most DELICIOUS cake on the face of the earth. It combined both my favorite chocolate, and my favorite cake. Mm... Dark chocolate cheesecake!

If you don't like cheesecake: You're crazy.

If you don't like dark chocolate: You're insane.

And if you don't like them together: You're psychotic!

Genis: Well your mood just took a one eighty...

Me: Yep! Lolz, here's the results, as promised. I'm counting the votes of non-members too. And by one vote it was...

Delia stays! Whoot! Guess you sren't baby killers after all lolz.

Checklist time!

Checklist:

1. Have Delia die... check.

2. Have Aurora break down over it... check.

3. Have this create some sort of physical contact with Kratos... check.

4. Have Delia ressurected without making Aurora MS... check, I think...

5. Have Delia's outlook on Kratos change... in progress.

6. Have Delia's return bring Aurora and Kratos closer together... dunno... did that last part count?

7. Have Delia be able to defend herself... fixed in later chapter.

8. Think of way to incorporate Delia into the plot more... in progress.

9. Go to sleep... going to in a second.

10. Make this list and even number... check.

Me: Hm... hope I didn't forget anything. Oh well. I'm sure I did. I have a crappy memory. And now for some sleep. Pwease review. Pwetty pwease! You can take the list and complain if you want I just need feedback. Hm... If you don't I could always send Arch after you... hehe... Fear the Great Lock. (Lock is short for warlock incase you didn't know...)


	23. Chapter 22

Me: 'Sup guys? This is going to be the first chapter written on my laptop!!!!!! :D Yay! This thing's got me on a writing kick! I'll be able to update much quicker and avoid sleep deprivation, since I can go hide somewhere and type up the chapters. (Not supposed to have this account remember? n.n I is bad...) All is well and everyone is happy. I do have a question though. Would anybody mind drawing me a pic of either Delia or Aurora? Pwetty pwease! I would've done so myself already but, my art, is crappy. The only thing I'm half-way decent at drawing is dragons and wolves. So, if you ever need a dragon or wolf drawn, I will but, don't have an account anywhere. Hehe... And I don't own a scanner so that would be impossible. Also, there have been some problems with the reviewing-type thingy. (My use of descriptive language is astounding, no?) If it doesn't work itself out, then, oh well... Hehe...

Genis: Lazy...

Me: I can't figure out how to contact fanfiction . net! Sue me.

Genis: Pft.

Me: Anyway. Boosted on chocolate again today so I think I can say this without completelly breaking down...

Genis: Your mood swings will be the end of us.

Me: :P I've been reading some of my favorite fanfics and I just kind of feel... well, to quote the Desians, 'Infereior'. Really. My descriptive language is beyond crappy. But, I'll try to fix that.

Genis: Maybe you should just stay away from reading fanfics until you're done with this one.

Me: B-But... :( Anyways, thanks to Rushingriver, ShadowVDP (Who reviews through IM'ing. Like I said, reviewing problems.) Luzelle, and silk345! You all get some chocoalte! :D That makes everything better. Speaking of... I WANT SOME FREAKIN' DARK CHOCOLATE PLEASE!!!!!

* * *

Chapter 22: Just A Touch.

All three sat there in the rain, sokaing wet, two fast asleep. Delia's figure was consumed by the woman holding her dearly, and her's was supported by a red headed mercenary. His wine eyes ran over the sleeping girls in his arms. Drops of water ran down his deep red bangs onto the top of Aurora's smooth head. The rain had already plastered her hair to her skull. They would then run own her hair to Delia's shot, curvy style. Her's stuck to her face like a thin mask. The man watched the repeating waterfall intently, along with listening to Aurora's soft breathing and Delia's ungraceful snores. His masculine arms, defined by the soaking wet arm length gloves, wrapped around them gently. He could feel Aurora's warm body press up against his chest each time she breathed in, and that caused him to tighten his grip each time. It got to the point where he thought it would crush her.

Angelic strength seemed to do that kind of thing.

So to avoid that situation he stood up, easily heaving them in the air with him, and left the now dented spot in the ground for the dryer patch of trees. Carefully, he set the snoozing pair on the ground under the biggest tree. They were both sopping wet. Hopefully they would dry by morning. Now for a blanket of some sort. Red eyes scanned the entire camp searching for a fuzzy square peice of fabric. The only ones they owned were wrapped around two pairs of people. A fuzzy pink blanket was curled tightly around Lloyd and Colette. The brunette had the blonde sitting in his lap while his head rested atop of her's. They seemed to both be having pleasant dreams because thier facial expressions held wide smiles and lifted brows. The delicate fingers of the Chosen were holding Lloyd's red outfit in a death grip.

Another purple one, heavier with more of linen feeling to it, hung loosely around Raine and Genis. The dignified Professor even held her back straight when she was sleeping. Silver hair tickled her neck as her little sibling leaned against her shoulder. The moonlight that leaked through breaks in the branches made some spots of thier hair glow like silver. Both of them fit perfectly in the base of the trunk they were laying in.

No more patches of warmth were lying around. Kratos sighed. He knew it wouldn't be much, but he unhooked the buttons on his cape, slid the shoulder pads off, and managed to halfway cover Aurora and Delia. The top halves of them were covered with the heavt fabric, but it became much thinner as it went down, and didn't cover the older woman's feet completely. A cold wind swept through the grove at that moment and caused her to shiver. The man had to restrain himself from laying down beside her. It might keep her warm, but she wouldn't be too happy when she woke up. Her nerves could never seem to handle him being up close. The last time he held her in his arms, just a while ago, her mind must've been in such a state of disarry that she didn't notice or care. And since Delia was there, it probably helped her cope.

What was it that broght those two together? Aurora's kind disposistion and maternal instincts? Delia's carefee, happy-go-lucky attitude that kept the spirits of the group up, not to mention Aurora's broken one? Whatever it was, it seemed the bond between them was impenetrable and unbreakable.

A couple of hours passed before Kratos began to feel the urge to touch her again. It wasn't that _she_ held any interest to him, but the warmth was a different story. It was like having to be around chocolate all the time and not have the ability to taste it. Then, a special brand comes along that's so unbearably sweet you can feel the taste of it on your breath hours after it left your mouth. But the after taste wasn't enough to satisfy you the whole day. You needed it every so often. But, it wasn't always offered every minute of the day, so you had to get it when you could.

The man walked over cautiously, as if he were about to be caught commiting a dire crime, and sat down beside the woman. Her face seemed so much more relaxed in sleep. Instead of the scowl she wore in public places, the firm smile she put on after watching the comical antics of her companions, or that deeply upset expression that marred her features when Delia died. Or, believed to be... This face was simple and straight, letting her elegant features take on a more natural setting. He admitted, it looked a little stern, but that was how her face was set. The blindfold gave her some aspects of a killer, something she completely was not, but the attributes fit her countenance well. The moonlight shone directly on her illuminating the soft indentations and rises of her cheeks. All in all, she looked like a goddess of judgement dressed in a royal blue outfit, matching her personality better.

His gloved hand began to reach for the side of her face so he could caress it gently with his thumb, but thought better of it. She might wake up if something touched her face. Instead, he took the hand off of Delia's back, and tugged on the fingerless gloves. It slid off with much more ease than Kratos had expected, causing her hand to fall to the ground. Her brow twitched a little as her face scrunched up. The mercenary held his breath and waited for the woman to go into a more sedated state. After a long sigh, she snuggled a little closer to the child in her arms and seemed to rest a little more peacefully.

Releasing his long kept breath slowly, Kratos took the motionless hand on the floor a tad more caringly this time, and clasped both of his own around it. The hot sensation seemed to trail up his arms with vigor. He swalloed the lump in his throat and started to pet the top of her hand. Aurora reacted by closing her long fingers around his palm, giving a more complete feeling. It was very faint, but the angel managed to make out a few of the words she whispered in her sleep. "H- broug- back Del-...may- that m- Kra- isn't s- ba- aft- all ... Kratos..." Her head rolled a little bit as she moaned, getting into a more comfortable posistion. Kratos could swear his ears were playing tricks on him. Did she just say... Kratos? His brows furrowed in confusion. He thought she loathed him. Was she talking him down or calling him out?

On impulse, he brought the warm hand to his face and opened the palm. His own hands massaged the muscles in her fingers until they fixated into and open hand. Very, very gently, he took her wrist, and drew it closer to the side of his face. With each inch, the heat grew. It only took a few seconds for him to close the distance between his skin and her's, but when he did, he flinched.

The much more sensitive skin on his face felt like it was on fire. The tips of her fingers burned into his skin like flames. Kratos blinked in surprise at his reaction. It wasn't normal for the coldest, hardest, and sternest of the four Seraphim to flinch at anything. Especially just a touch.

But it wasn't just a touch. This was a touch he could feel. Not just the pressure or the texture, but the body heat of another being. Aurora sighed as he let Kratos slid her hand down his face. When he got to the bottom of his face, he drug her hand over his chin, to the other side. The fingers curled up just a bit as they went back up this side, giving him less heat. To fix this problem he took his other hand and gently pressed against the back of her's. It spread out and distributed more of her warmth over him. He hadn't blinked, for fear that he might miss something. Eyes still wide, her would glide her fingers over to the bridge of his nose. It rested there for a few seconds before he reluctantly closed his now dry, wine red eyes. Slowly, he seperated her fingers so that a pair would be touching his eyes and her thumb rested on a cheek. She twitched, feeling the pupils move under his eyelids.

Finally, he moved the burning palm down to his lips. They were a little dry, and the texture was rough, but her hand ran over both softly, giving them a tingling sensation. He shivered and relaxed a little more. A sigh escaped his mouth, tickling Aurora's sensitive hands, making her move them away. She reached his hairline and waited there for more prompting.

Utterly dumbstruck, Kratos gripped her wrist tighter, and ran her fingers through his hair, keeping them as close to his actual head as he could. That sent more tingling sensations down his spine casuing him to gasp. The saliva in his throat just got a lot thicker for some reason. It felt more like a thick, glue substance that stuck to the insides of his trachea.

That's when reson decided to stick its ugly head into the moment.

She... was his assasination target. So basically he was fraternizing with the enemy, which wasn't acceptable at all. His once calm face twisted into a scowl. His hand realsed her's rather ungracefully and it seemed to clash on the floor. An involuntary yet soft cry of abandonment parted Aurora's lips. Kratos's lip twitched as he turned to look at her face. The tips of her ears were pressed against her ears so much, they might've grown to her head. The pale features of her beautiful face scrunched up in agony. Her hand lying on the ground shook in the cold night air. He hadn't even been thinking about the effects that the absence of _his _body heat would have on _her_.

Quickly, he scooped the delicate limb up again, but still frowned. This was unacceptable and he knew it. The closer he was, the more her death would hurt. She was just a worthless crippled half-elf. What should it matter to him what her sleep was like. The only reason he picked it back up,

was so he didn't get caught.

Because then, he couldn't deny the reasons why he _really_ wanted to touch her.

* * *

The first person up the next morning who didn't actually need sleep, was Raine. Kratos had long left Aurora the night before for a vacant tree root. Also, his cape was reatatched to his shoulders. Raine stretched her arms out to her sides, recoiling in embarassment when a bone popped. Her white cheeks flushed a dark shade of red causing her to pretend to wake her brother up. She prodded her only family in the side a few times, earning some hard earned groans of,

"Raaaaiiiine... It's too early."

"Get up Genis. I know its early, but I don't want you to sleep 'til noon like Lloyd does. Now, up, up! We've got a seal to search for."

With a grunt of intolerance, He sat upright rubbing his unruly head. Genis couldn't take his sister's lectures so early in the morning. He also stretched, recieving a hard object in the palm of his hand. When he could finally work his crusty eyes open, his vision focused in on dorky, smiling Raine, and a hair brush.

"Hop to it." She ordered. He sighed and began to yank the mideval torture machine through his spiky hair, occasionaly yelping in pain when it got caught.

Colette was next to stir. She blinked a few times and rubbed some life into them. She looked over the site. First up, to Lloyd's loudly snoring face. She giggled and tapped his nose. The teen snorted and opened his eyes.

"Colette?" He asked.

She giggled some more and nodded. "Yep! You're such a sleepy head Lloyd." He went red and put a hand to the back of his head. Then, he spotted Aurora's back gently rising and falling.

"At least I'm not the last one up today!" He announced rather loudly. Everyone followed his pointing finger to Aurora's back. She grumbled and shifted some. A deep sigh filled her lungs and she sat up, her body still covering up Delia.

"Wha-" She asked half-asleep. Suddenly, a small pair of hands jerked her back down causing them all to gasp. Except for Kratos...

"Aurora?" Raine asked apprehensively. "Is there something you're hiding from us?"

"Ow... The voices hurt Aurora..." Delia moaned.

The mood just seemed to get a little more exiting as a black head popped over the swordswoman's form.

"Delia?" Everyone asked in disbelief.

"Delia!" Colette jumped out of her embrace with Lloyd, leaving him to shiver in the crisp morning air. The blonde plucked the disorentied girl up and gave her a big hug that squeezed most of the air out of her. Genis wasn't too far behind, grabbing the child's and and raising it in the air. All this fanfare was too much for a small, half-asleep child to take. Her body began to shake from the warmth of her guardian being whisked away from her. Her eyes weren't even open yet.

"Aurora!" She called helplessly as the ecstatic blonde and her partner in crime shook her to no end.

Aurora tried to get her bodily functions back in check and came to her senses. "Guys! Put her down!" She croaked, still align with the morning state of mind. Her head swam as she tried to stand up. Her feet failed to keep her upright and she toppled on the celebrating trio. She groaned and rubbed her head.

"Ow..." The muffled voice of Delia sounded from under the pile of bodies on top of her. Colette went into a panic.

"Delia! Oh, I'm so sorry!" The blonde struggled to get free, but Genis and Aurora were blocking her way.

Aurora rolled off of the top and landed on her back. She moaned in agitation. It was far too early for this crap. Genis 'ugh'ed and stood up. The once clean comb he had been holding, was now hopelessly entangled in his wads of silver hair. His feet drug him over to Raine so he could complain and blame this on her. The Chosen jumped off the tiny girl and poked her side.

"Delia?" Colette asked. She went into a panic when she didn't respond. "Delia?" Her voice cracked this time. This in turn, made Aurora awake and fully aware of her surroundings. She was at the small girl's side in less than a seconds. She nudged her a bit.

"Delia?" No response... The woman glared. Delia had just came back. Like hell she was gonna let her die again. "Delia? C'mon sweetie, time to wake up." She pushed the girl over, allowing her to release an unlady-like snort and a twitch of her petite nose. Aurora sighed heavily in relief. She had just went back to sleep. The woman pulled a hand on her lap and opened it to reveal the tooth Delia had given her and its imprint molded into her skin. Her throat hummed pleasantly as she chuckled. Delia's first tooth. Who would've thought she would end up with it.

"Aurora. It's cold." The usually perky girl complained. Her caretaker shook her head and pulled her into her arms. She seemed to conk out again immediately.

"Ugh! This freakin brush won't come out!" Genis was frustratingly trying to pull the hairbrush through his seemingly indestructable knot. "Get out!"

Lloyd started to laugh so hard his sides hurt. "Dude! You sleep in a haystack or someting?"

"I slept beside Raine. Does that count?" He rolled his eyes. His sister wasn't amused.

"Here Genis. I'll get it." She said. The mage raised an eyebrow skeptically, but shrugged and let her try. How much worse could it get?

...Appartenly a lot...

On top of the brush being glued to his head, now Raine's long fingers were stuck in the mess too, and after an hour, so were Lloyd and Colette's. "YOU GUYS SUCK AT HELPING!" Genis screamed.

"Well you're not so great at combing your hair!" Lloyd tried to jerk his hand out, causing the boy to yelp.

"Hey! You did that on purpose!" He whined.

"Did not!"

"Did too!"

"Did not!"

"Ugh! Someone please, either get this thing and those things outta my hair, or get Lloyd to shut up. Aurora!" He begged. "Please!"

"Genis, I would make Lloyd shut up, but it would require me to do unspeakable things."

"..." Everyone stared at her.

"And I'm holding Delia." She shrugged nonchalantly. Suddenly, the weight in her lap was relieved as Kratos took it upon himself to hold Delia. The child's face frowned with being switched off, but she made it work by burying her head into whoever she was leaning against. Aurora nodded uneasily and went to work on the catastrophe before her. She took a sigh to become at peace. She had a feeling this would drain all she had.

* * *

"Two hours. I can't belive it took you TWO HOURS to free my head. And it's STILL numb." Genis complained, not feeling the ice pack on his head. They had travled past the HoS already since they still had most of the day to walk. Lloyd kept harrassing Genis about his now patchy hair with Raine taking the liberty to smack him from time to time. That's when Genis got to laugh.

Delia had been awake for half the day before collapsing of exhaustion half-way to Luin. Aurora carried her piggy-back style the rest of the way. Colette hummed odds and ends of tunes while ocassionally stroking Delia's hand or playing with her hair. Kratos had taken the lead since he knew this world like the back of his hand. They'd reached the city by the afternoon. The sun cast and orange glow over the lake, making the city around it seem to shimmer. The loud din of community bonding could be heard within a mile radius.

The group wasn't given much attention to. Most of the citizens were to busy going about their lives, fishing and such. Delia awoke becasue of the ruckus. "It's too loud." She complained into Aurora's ear. She nodded understadingly and patted the girl's head as if she were a puppy who'd learned to sit, stand, beg etc. The girl squinted her eyes against the bright sun and nuzzled her face into Aurora's neck, trying to get back to sleep. The woman leaned her head against the ear of her charge to try and take away some of the strain all the noise was putting on her little body.

A few kids ran past them with a lady trailing them. "I'll get you next time!" She yelled. Aurora did a double take.

"Sheena?" She asked, the vibration in her neck causing Delia to stir.

"Aurora?" The raven head skidded to a stop and faced the group."I-It's you guys!" She stuttered, fumbling with the cards she was attempting to equip.

"You know her?" Lloyd asked.

"I suppose one would get aquianted with each other after spending a day inside a hole." She noted. Lloyd blinked and turned red.

"Oh yeah..."

The girl clinging to Aurora's neck squirmed around before lifting her head. Her green eyes took time to focua in on every detail, especiall the woman before them. "Aurora. Are you friends with that pretty lady?" She asked, rubbing her tired face into awareness. Sheena flushed madly and fumbles around some more.

"Pretty?" Genis asked, recieving a glare from the girl in question. "She's trying to kill us."

Delia's eyes widened with fear and buried her face in Aurora's neck. "Help me!" She shrieked. Everyone sweatdropped. This 'assasin' was being outdone in mind game with a child, and Delia was the one cowering in fear?

"I-It's okay Delia. Calm down." Aurora patted her on the head soothingly.

Sheena looked on embarassed. "U-Um I'm sorry." She walked up awkwardly to the pair. When she touched Delia's hand, the child recoiled further back.

"Go away!"

Raine took this opportunity to deal with the ninja. "How could you scare an innocent child like that?" She filled her tone with disgust.

"I-I" The shinobi stuttered. "I-"

"Yeah! Is that why those kids were running? Do you stalk little kids?" Genis joined in. Agging things on was a gift of his.

"I-I... I'll get you next time!" She shouted as she puffed away in smoke. The group coughed at the residue left behind by her magic arts.

"Couldn't she just teleport without the smoke?" Lloyd asked, waving some black clouds away from his face.

Colette covered her mouth as a sick look overcame her. "Ew..."

"Oh goddess! First my hair, now this! It'll take weeks to clean it off!"

"Genis, stop that. You sound like a girl."

"Do not!"

"Not again." Raine moaned. "Let's just go to the inn. We're all tired."

"I concur." Kratos strode past them all, unfazed by the smoke. Lloyd glared after him and his Kratos-y-ness... Don't really know what to put, but you get it right? (You see the problem with my writing now right?)

* * *

"I wanna sleep outside to!" Delia complained. Aurora had no money to get a room, so Delia was staying with Colette. Of course, she wouldn't let go when they tried to pull her off. "Lemme go! Why can't I sleep outside?" She whined.

"Delia." The woman with a living necklace sighed, exasperated from all of the fits she was putting up. "There might be monsters, or bandits, or assasins. What kind of person would I be if I let you sleep in a place like that? Huh?" She could feel Raine give Delia another tug.

"No!" She pouted. All of her companions were either banging thier head against the wall, or rubbing thier temples.

"Ugh!" Both Lloyd and Genis both grumbled in unison.

"This is becoming increasingly difficult." Kratos sighed.

"Delia. If you keep doing this, I'm afraid we _will_ have to leave you behind." Aurora warned.

"Wha-" Tears filled her eyes. Her death grip loosened around her neck as soon as the Professor pulled again, causing the girl to topple on the floor. "I don't wanna go." She moaned.

"Delia please. Not tonight. We're all tired and you're making it extremely difficult to go to bed. Please." Aurora begged the girl.

Delia's lip twitched, hurt at the rejection. "Fine!" She shouted and took her tantrum up the stairs. A slam could be heard from the second floor. The woman sink to her knees and sighed.

"I'm really sorry guys. I have no idea what's gotten into her...."

"It's okay." Colette patted her shoulder. "I'll try and make her happy."

Aurora nodded gratefully. "Thank-you. A lot."

Everyone headed off to thier respective bedrooms with thier respective roomates. The dead beat woman trudged outside in the cols night air. Her head was gurting so badly she could just decapitate herself. It pained her to do that to poor Delia. All she wanted was Aurora's company, and she couldn't afford to do that. Her feet carried her to a small flower garden around the back of the building. Sadly, Noishe was nowhere to be seen. She frowned and crumpled on the floor in exhaustion. Finally, the long, tedious day was over and she could get some rest. Then it hit her. She fell asleep last night, and the nightmares never came? Could Delia have been the solution. Who else could've been there last night to comfort her?

...

* * *

The clouds covered the moon that night as Kratos gazed out his window. Lloyd was snoring so loudly that even if he could, there was no way in hell he'd get to sleep. And awake, it was just annoying. That familiar urge struck him again and he was needing to go outside. He shook his head. No, that would be unwise. Time to harden up and loose the emotions. He sighed and laid down on the plain, plushy bed. No heat, no feeling, no nothing. Staying shameless was going to be a hassle...

* * *

Me: I'm a _little _more pleased with this chapter. The only reason it ends so short is because I have orientation tomorrow and I want to finish a chapter before I go, becasue REAL school starts Tuesday. :P Yay! People are guessing as to who the mysterious person was! That makes me happy. No one has guessed it right yet though. I'm surprised no one's tried to guess Aurora's past and not just with Ryudo. (That oine's kinda obvious I think...) Dig deeper. Go into her home, where she was, what happened, who her parents were. Go ahead. I don't mind. I think I've planned out something no one's ever thought of before. At least... I hope not. So you know one thing she isn't. An angel. I mean really. Almost every Kratos fic I've read, his lovers all either become an angel or get wings. What good is him having wings if the other does too? It would be more romantic for him to carry Aurora right? Anyways, I'd really like to hear your theories so, Please review! And if anyone can draw, please tell me. I wantsa picture... I know one is in progress but it's only for Aurora. Someone do Delia for me! Please! Or a Aurora/Delia scene! I'd really appreciate it! And it'd make me vewy happy! :D So long for now. If I keep typing I'm gonna get caught! It's 2:00 here lol. Oh noes! Bed time. x.x Later!


	24. Chapter 23

Me: Hellos again! I'm am very sad... School started. High school is BIG. And I mean really big. You get to the end of a hallway and think 'Finally! The end!' and then it breaks off into three more wings... :( It's going to be very hectic. Two honors classes is going to be a pain in the- uh, you know. Ugh. No! *Bangs head against desk*

Lloyd: And I have to go with you in your head! I can't comprehend school, especially advanced classes! I hate you!

Me: It's not my fault I'm smart!

Lloyd: :P

Me: Stop being a baby. I was browsing through the Kratos romances rated T with all sorts of characters, and my story seems to have more reviews than the average fic! I WUV YOU GUYS SO MUCH!!!!!! (And if I'm wrong, please let me stay on my pillar. I'll write better...) Thanks to Rushingriver, Shadow VDP, and Gamer Girl for reviewing. More chocolate! o.o Mmmm... chocolate...

Lloyd: You need to come down off that chocolate.

Me: I haven't had lunch yet, I'm hungry... *Pouts in the corner*

Lloyd: ...

* * *

Chapter 23: Will

Shock ran through Aurora's viens like lightening. Her heart pumped at full speed as she sat up in the middle of flowers. She surveyed the smells and sounds around her, then confirmed that this was definetly not a hotel room in Palmacoasta, and she was alone. Not forced to room with someone, but in sweet solitide. The rosy pink of the sun was a little more visible this time. The nightmares must've come later than usual. A small smile graced her delicate pink lips. At least the next time she slept, Delia would be there.

She groaned and rose into a sitting posistion. Small rustles of the waking public fell from the inn's interior. A smack, followed by a 'What the hell Professor?" from a certain teenage boy floated to her ears. A chuckle escaped her slightly parted lips. Oh, the spats her group got into. It was like living in one huge family.

Breakfast was simple. A set of chairs sat around a cheap wooden table, marked with scratches from buttons, buckles, and the knife marks mad by little kids with nothing better to do than to deface public property. Delia sat with an angry expression plastered across her face, refusing to sit next to Aurora, much to the woman's dismay. On her right side, Kratos, Lloyd, and Colette sepreated them, and on her left were Raine and Genis. The tension was strung as tight as an archer's bow string.

"So..." Lloyd tried to break the ice while stabbing at a piece of his eggs.

"Yeah..." Genis joined in. "Um, my head doesn't hurt anymore. Isn't that great?" He looked around at the dead/worried looks of his companions. "Whoo..." He punched his fist weakly in the air. A few of the more lively members glanced dully at him, then went back to thier meals.

The dim lighting seemed to fit the mood perfectly. Delia's malicious green eyes hid under her black bangs, casting a dark shadow down to the nose. Aurora's ears were back in submission. A pained expression was painted on her face. She only ate two bites of her biscuit and was done. Even for her, that wasn't much. She was afraid if she ate too much, breakfast would make a reappearance.

"Um, well, is everybody finished?" Colette asked. The most eaten at the table was six bites of eggs, won by the son of an angel with a big apetite. Mumbles of appreciation were exchanged across the quiant table. Nobody had wanted to talk, let alone ask to leave the table. A sort of unpresidented meal time deadline was created and they all pushed back thier chairs, grtefully accepting the escape from tense air.

It was still quite early, for them at least, so they decided to stock up. Raine and her students all hurried off away from the pair of unhappy girls. Kratos sighed and walked past them. Delia's face was red with anger. Aurora swallowed her saliva nervously. Her pale shaking hand took the small girl's tanner one, the smaller one flinching away.

"Delia." The woman shook her head. "What has gotten into you?"

"Nothing..." She stuck her bottom lip out in a pouting attempt.

Her self proclaimed foster mom bent on one knee. "Delia." She out a hand on her upper arms and patted it. "What is it that you're so mad about. Is it the room? I'm sorry but I couldn't afford one, and I wasn't about to let you stay out here unprotected."

"...You don't like me anymore..." She mumbled.

"What? Delia. What's making you think all these things? First it's 'You're angry at me' and now it's 'You don't like me'. What's on your mind?"

The girl in question looked down nervously and rubbed her feet together. "'Cause that's what adults do."

"Explain... Please?" She begged. Delia sighed and continued.

"Adult's don't want me. At the ranch, after they took daddy, none of the grown ups would help me with anything. They said I was too hyper. And then, the Desians are grown too. All of them were mad at me for some reason and they hit me with these long strings. See?" She pulled her shirt up to reveal long, brutal, nasty scars that adorned her stomach. Aurora put a hand to it and gasped. Who would do such a thing, and to a child! And what's more, Delia thought _she _was like that.

"Delia." She said breathlessly. "I would never do those things to you. Especially not to you." Green eyes peeked at her from under their hiding spot.

"How do I know you won't change?"

Aurora hugged Delia strongly, then held her at arms length by her shoulders. "Delia, you're like my own child. If I ever did anything to hurt you I would kill myself."

"No!" Delia put two hands over the hilt of her sword.

Aurora chuckled. "Have I hurt you yet?" She asked.

"No, but you might."

The woman threw back her head and laughed. A confused frown stretched Delia's lips. What was so funny? She finished the round of hysteria, looked back to Delia, and shook her head. "I love you." She chuckled and pulled her into a hug. The black head giggled.

"I love you too Aurora."

* * *

Friends once more, the black head and brunette strode through the city, hand and hand. Acting as her see and eye, Delia looked around the shops for anything interesting. Hm.. gels, magic, armor, ooh! Weapons! Delia had her lustful green eyes set on a set of silver throwing knives. They glimmered brightly in the morning sun.

"Oh! Aurora look!" She tugged on her glove.

"Delia?" The woman tried to jog her memory. "I can't."

The girl went red. "Oops! I'm sorry!" She cried loudly.

"Sh sh sh. It's okay." The woman chuckled involuntarily at the girl incessant apologies. "What were you looking at?"

"Those knives! I can go with you guys if I can use a weapon right? Can I have them?"

Aurora paled. She swallowed back some thick saliva. "Kn-Knives?" Her voice shook.

"Uh-huh!" Delia shook her head exitedly.

For once, Aurora was glad she was broke. "I d-don't have any money Delia."

What an opportune time for Kratos to walk by...

Delia saw him in the corner of her eye and called to him. "Sca- Uh, Mr. Kratos!" She sweatdropped. The mercenary took notice of the two and walked over. He loomed a good two-three feet over her, casting a dark shadow over the child. He was really tall when you thought about it. Her voice shook a little from intimidation. "R-Raine said th-that I neede to protect myslef r-right?"

"I believe she told me about that once, yes." He stated.

"Del-" Aurora's mouth was covered up by a pair of tiny hands.

The girl cleared her throat and continued. "Aurora doesn't have any money," The woman's blush appeared from under the girl's hands. "And I want to use those shiny knives over there," She pointed to the case. "Could you get me them?"

Aurora facepalmed with the two hands still over her mouth, creating a mask of hands.

"Alright." Kratos answered.

"What?!" Aurora's voice broke through the palm barrier. She hopped to her feet. "Y-You can give Delia throwing knives! She's only seven!"

"Hey!"

"I began training with a sword when I was only five years of age. Delia is past that age." Kratos reasoned.

"B-Bu-But!"

"Aurora!" Delia whined. "Please? I'll practice real hard!"

The woman's eyebrow twitched, then she sighed in defeat. "I guess."

"Yay!" She rushed over to the store.

Aurora put her head in her hands. "What've I done?"

Kratos raised an eyebrow. That was the exact same thing Anna said when Lloyd obtained his first pair of wooden swords.

* * *

"Ooh!" Delia took a knife out of her ten piece set. It was a simple dagger built aerodynamicaly smart. The hilt was made of a black leather material that held a shiny silver blade at the end. "It's pointy!" She rubbed her finger on the top of the knife. After giggling, she poked Aurora gently with it. "Poke." She snickered.

"Don't poke other people Delia, you'll hurt somebody." Aurora sighed.

The girl frowned. "I thought that was the point."

An aggrivated groan passed her lips. "Let's stick to 'poking' monsters, okay?"

"Okay!" Her smile returned. She examined the weapon once more, this time poking herself. And poking herself. And poking herself. It became addicting.

"Delia." Kratos warned, he was still walking with them.

"Wha-ah!" While paying attention to Kratos, she neglected the oncoming dagger and cut herself. Bright red blood erupted from her forearm. "Ow!" She yelled. Aurora was at her side in a milisecond, trying to nurse the wound as best she could. She took an apple gel from her bag and gently started rubbing the cut with the goo, Delia whimpering from the sting it delivered.

"Delia, did you poke yourself?" Anger filled her voice. Like a scolded puppy, the child cowered as far away as she could.

"Yes..."

"Delia! Do I have to confiscate those already!" Her brows were creased into what looked like a pernanent scowl. "I swear, could you just listen to me for once!"

"Aurora-" Kratos tried to interject, seeing the fear in Delia's face.

"And you!" She snapped. "You gave her these goddess forsaken things in the first place! I told you not to!"

"But Aurora, I was just playing."

"And playing will get you killed one day!" She yelled in her face. Delia's lip quivered as a few tears slipped by. She took a few steps back before running to Kratos. He took her outstretched hand involuntarily. Anna would do that to Anna sometimes, but it was only because she loved him.

Aurora frowned, realizing she was rubbing salt into the still healing wounds from this morning. "D-Delia I-" Her voice was softer than she had ever spoken before without whispereing. The girl turned away from her and hid her face in Kratos's cape.

"You don't love me." She mumbled.

"Delia, yes I do!" She tried to hug the girl, but she pulled away and darted down the streets, her arm still bleeding profusely. Aurora never got to finish helping her. The woman sunk to her knees. "I've failed her." She droned.

"No. You have only made an error." Kratos stated. "You just need to fix it before it becomes a mistake."

* * *

Delia ran down the streets, tears blurring her vision. All she could make out were blurs of color zipping by. She turned a corner and ran into something red. She sniffed a bit, her injured arm had managed to be under her when this happened. Biting her tongue was all she could do to keep from crying harder than she already was.

"Delia?" A familiar voice rang in her head. "Woah, what happened to you?"

"M-Mister wanted guy?" She stuttered. Thte voice sighed exasperateldy.

"Yes, mister wanted guy. Call me Lloyd for short." He told her for about the umpteenthmillion time.

She swallowed back tears. "O-Okey dokey mister wanted guy." Her feet wobbled as she got up, revealing a large pool of blood under her. Lloyd went bug-eyed.

"Delia, what-"

"Wh-Why are there two of you mister wanted guy-" Her head swam before she collapsed in the street.

The teen panicked and picked her up. "Delia! Hello? What happened?"

"Oh! There you are Lloyd. What's-ah!" Colette shrieked as she looked over his shouder.

"Guys, we gotta go, Raine's- oh crap..." Midget mage stared at the bleeding girl. "What are you guys standing here for?! We gotta get Raine to help us!" He tugged on one of Lloyd's white scarves, jerking his head back. "Follow me!" He ordered and dashed down the dirt paths. Lloyd only had to jog to keep up.

"Go faster!" He griped.

"I can't help it! My legs are tiny!"

"Delia!" The Chosen.

"What?" Delia asked. "Why are there five pretty ladies?" She asked.

"Delia?" Lloyd asked.

"I am a duck. Quack. Quack." She had her eyes crossed.

"Oh great. She's delerious." Genis rolled his eyes as they burst through the gate. Raine stood against the wall reading a book titled "The Theory of Mana Restoration and Exchange" when her students came back, yelling at her.

"What?" Raine asked.

Lloyd panted. "D-Delia is bleeding. Here." He showed her his empty arms.

The Professor crossed her arms. "Don't play jokes with me." She said sternly.

"I-I'm not. See?" He looked down to find Delia missing. "Where'd she go?!"

"Hi little puppy. I love you." The afore mentioned girl was bent over a large brick, hugging it lovingly. Her companions looked on in confusion.

"I see. I'm sorry Lloyd." Raine apologized as she approached the disfunctional girl. "Delia. Let me help you." She coaxed.

She looked around to the woman. "Why are you orange? I like red. Like mister wanted guy." She leaned over and waved. "Hi mister wanted guy!"

Lloyd sweatdropped and didn't know what else to do except wave back.

* * *

Aurora kept banging her head relentlessly against the gate post and repeating 'Stupid' over and over. Raine had patched up poor hallucenating Delia and gave her some kind of herbal sedative. It should work at least half-way to the seal.

"Would you mind explaining why she was in such a state?" Raine asked.

"..." Aurora kept mutilating herself.

Kratos sighed and answerd for her. "Delia wanted to learn the art of dagger throwing so she would be of help on this journey. She just began having a little to much fun 'poking' things with the knives she recived."

"She cut herself?" Genis asked. "Wow. And I thought Lloyd was stupid."

"Hey!" Lloyd smacked the back of his friend's head.

"What have I done?" Aurora moaned. "I'm going to kill her one day. I don't derserve her..."

"What are you talking about?" Colette giggled. Everyone turned to face her. "You two are always joined at the hip. Everyone fights at times, but it'll always get better." Aurora smiled.

"Thank-you Colette."

"You're welcome."

* * *

"... I think I used a little too much sedative." Raine mused. They had made it all the way to the masoleum, and Delia was still in the herb induced coma. She was laid by the fire to keep warm, the pink fuzzy blanket given over to just her. Colette refused the purple blanket as well as Kratos. Angels didn't need blankets, but some needed space heaters... Lloyd passed it up. He was sitting close enough to the fire, so once again, Raine and Genis used the purple blanket. Genis looked at it wearily.

"If this is what messed up my hair last night, it's gonna be torched tomorrow." He crossed his arms.

"Just go to sleep Genis. We've got a big day tomorrow." His sister slid under the heavy duty cover and was asleep instantly. He sighed and climbed in with his sibling, conking out in only a few minutes. Colette had gone for a walk, and Lloyd fell asleep beside Delia. Aurora sat against the pyramid type monument and was so tired, she neglected the need to stay awake. Kratos contemplated going over to touch her.

Or, he could intervene when she awoke with another nightmare, and get closer to her. It would make it all the much easier for him to kill her if she trusted him.

* * *

"No!" Aurora jerked up from her sleeping posistion. Her breathing was increased to an inhuman pace and cold beads of sweat ran rapidly down the pale face it was born on. Her cheeks were flushed yet her body was shivering. The moonlight shone on the woman's white skin brightly, causing her to glow in the night. "N-no... please..." She whispered. All she wanted was another night's sleep free of any dark memories. Was that so hard to ask for?

Guess the goddess thought so.

The woman shivered as she sighed and curled up in a ball, her back leaning against the masoulem wall. Her head hung loosely between her knees. A few cold tears drew cold streaks on her cheeks down to her chin where they lingered a bit before dropping. The dark purple circles of sleep deprivation were so serious, they became visible underneath her bandanna. She rested her hot forehead on the tips of her bent legs and rubbed it. How was she going to survive? Her lungs and gut were telling her to scream as loud as she could, her brain working a lot harder than normal to subdue thier impulses. The woman head bang softly against the stone, stopping after a few minutes to regain her breath.

"Can't sleep?" A voice asked. It was deep, rich, and masculine. Only one person could've made music without singing. The battle worn hands of Kratos Aurion posistioned themselves on the woman's shoulder. She jerked herself away.

"Go away." She mumbled.

"Do you treat all your saviors that way?" He asked, nudging her with his foot.

She looked at him increduously. "Savior? Since when have you saved me?" Her voice was a tad impatient.

"Once at the fire seal, at the Thoda Geyser, once at a House of Salvation, and bringing back Delia." Four of his half-way gloved fingers were pointing out of his right hand. He smirked victoriously. "I win."

"Just go. I want to be alone." She droned. All of her amusement had been drained and the part of the brain used for patience refused to function properly. Energy had left to make room for fatigue. The rest she was getting supported her like she was on a diet of water and peanuts. Just enough to keep you alive, but only temporarily.

The man kept on looming over her, refusing her pleas of alone time. She gave up on him leaving and tried to drown out the sense of his presence.

"Is there a reason you refuse to rest?" He asked.

"..." Her body heaved with a sigh. "I have my reasons, but I will keep them to myself."

"That would be unhealthy."

"And since when have you cared about my welbeing?"

He frowned. "I have been helping you, are you blind?"

Bad choice of words.

She twitched, giving Kratos time to realize what he just said to her. "Aurora I-"

"Get the hell away from me!" She snapped.

"Auro-"

"GO!" She shook while panting heavily for air to satiate her screaming lungs. He reached out and touched her arm and she flinched. Her body snapped up to full hieght and she turned to him, a finger pointing at his chest accusingly. "I can't get sleep because _men _like _you_ don't care about anything other than your freakin desires and treat _me _like some emotionless toy you can do with as you please." She kicked the ground violently, sending up a gritty cloud of dirt. "Well you know what?!?!? I don't belong to anyone anymore nor will I ever be, so you can either leave or die! Your choice." Kratos's eyes widened at her outburst. This was clearly meant for someone else, it just came out at the wrong time. Aurora's cheeks flared a deep shade of red, pants racking her body.

"Aurora..."

Her lips quivered as the expression on her face changed from infuriated to exasperated. Tears began to flow freely from her broken eyes and she collapsed where she stood. Kratos, using the enhanced reflexes he owned, caught her before she hit the ground. His arms wrapped themselves gently around her back, pressing her softly against his body as the woman pushed her nose inside the lower diamond cut in his outfit, burning the skin of his chest there. Her nostrils inhaled his smell. The sensation mired her brain with deep fog, his scent found everywhere. The lifeless limbs that hung by her sides reluctantly rose around his waist and pulled him closer to her.

"I don't wanna go back." She cried.

He rocked her gently while using one hand to rub her head soothingly and the other to secure her body to his. "You don't have to."

His own legs bent into a criss-cross posistion, Aurora's shaking body in his arms. "But how do I know I can trust you?" Her face looked up at him.

He blinked, thinking for a moment, and squeezed her warm body tighter. "Just do."

...

That lying, backstabbing, two faced, son of a bi-...

* * *

"She was very close." A deep voice boomed in the white void.

"I know, but please, let her stay. My daughter needs her." A female's voice pleaded.

"If Delia loses the will to live, then, it is my duty as part of the overrule, to kill her."

"Origin." A more tenor voice entered the conversation. "You know our daughter could be a keypoint in your plan. If you kill her, then I have no doubts that Aurora would kill herself."

"No!" The woman shrieked. "S-She wouldn't do that, would she?"

"I'm afraid so my dear. No one, not even little Aurora is strong enough to resist guilt. But as long as Delia wants to live, she will. That girl's got spunk. I doubt she will go down that easily. Besides, everyone has thier bad days."

"And even so, it is too late to do anything now. He has already used his overrule on you. Time will tell wether your daughter even retains the _right _to live. The balance of the worlds is starting to tip because of her. As soon as she releases her true powers, all could be lost."

"She cannot and will not use her powers. I made sure to seal them away in this necklace." The tenor voice calmly stated.

"Hm. Alright. She lives for now, but only for now. Enjoy watching your child why you can." Origin left the pair alone.

"W-What are we going to do?" The woman sobbed.

"Shh. Shh. It's okay darling. Everything's fine. I'll make sure she is okay."

* * *

Me: Lol. Random plot twist I inserted, and, I like it. Only three reviews on the last one guys. Where'd all my support go? :( Techniacally two, one was for the previous chapter. Maybe I just update too fast. I'll make sure to take my time on the next one. Review please! First day of high-school's tomorrow and I want to come home to lotsa reviews okay? Thank-you!


	25. Chapter 24

Genis: ...Y-

Me: Don't want to f***ing hear it. Yeah, another chapter. Whoo... Review, don't review. I don't care. And I know what you're thinking. You _cannot,_ and I repeat, CANNOT deny it; you are thinking this. Every single human being always thinks the worst about something or someone. I do it, you do it, the entire world does it. So, right now, or when you read the note, you were thinking, "Oh, DragonLady24, you just put up those hiatus things to get more reviews."

I do not. As soon as I finish this chapter, I'm going to delete all the pity reviews since the first Author's Note I typed up. Kept them for inspiration, but what the hell. I'm not going to let you think that of me.

And now, to fuss at one of my reviewers. You know who you are, and by the time everyone else has read this, I will have deleted all of the reviews so... Time to let all hell loose. Take note, I more than likely will go overboard.

**_YOU LITTLE THIEF! _**YOU'VE WRITTEN CHAPTERS FOR MY STORY ALREADY?!?!? NO MATTER WHAT YOU SAY THAT'S PLAGARISM!!! I don't care if it's legal here or not; plagarism is plagarism, and that's bad. It's STEALING! You said you were Christian, so act it. And I'm one too, so don't even go there with me. Don't question me about my thoughts because I have problems; I know it; I will deal with them myself. I will never be able to kill myself because I'm afraid of pain, now, with that said, AURORA AND DELIA AND THIS STORY LINE ARE ALL MY INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY! _**MY-F***ING PROPERTY!!!!**_ IF YOU DON'T LIKE BEING FUSSED AT, DON'T STEAL OTHER PEOPLES IDEAS! It doesn't matter if you change all the names, start where they left off, or anything else, if you publish something in real life that is like someone else's story, you go to jail. End of story. Ir really REALLY pisses me off. If I want the story discontinued, I want it to STAY discontinued. You don't have the right to barge in here and steal MY story, even if it IS discontinued. NOR do you have the right to give ME a deadline on MY story. What if I wanted to restart it later huh? I swear, if I catch you or anyone else doing that I WILL find a way to kick you off fanfiction. I don't tolerate plagarism in real life, and I won't tolerate it HERE! _**UNDERSTAND!!!**_ And I doubt you want to lose your first profile on here. If there is a report button, I WILL use it. If there isn't, I will contact fanfiction directly through E-mail. Don't think I won't. And if any of you want to comment, think first. What if I stole one of YOUR stories after you discontiuned it? Go ahead and be a smart alec if you want, but deep down inside, I know you would hate it just as much as I do. Now for you reviewer, if you're pissed off at my rant, good. You needed it. Read or don't read. I don't care.

* * *

Chapter 24: Balacruf Mausoleum Part 1

It was the longest time since Kratos had felt content.

The warmth that radiated off Aurora's body was astounding. His whole front side was burning up. The girl sat in his lap, legs mimicking his crossed ones, nose nuzzled against his neck, her body pressed against his own by battle worn hands. He leaned his head on hers, attempting to get a more complete feeling. She subconciously moved her hands into different posistions, one of them being on the sides of his arms where niether the gloves or the shoulder pads reached. The man shivered and held her closer. It wasn't supposed to feel like this. He had a job to do, but it didn't feel like this had anything to do with gaining her trust.

It felt like he was going just for her.

True to it's heritage, a strong gust of wind blew by the masoleum, swirling all of the sparkling pebbles and brown crinkled leaves around their bodies in a whirlwind of nature. The woman shook and jerked in the cold night air. Since she was practically glued to the man's body now, he took the heavy linen cape on his back, and attatched it to her shoulders. He had to support them a bit, seeing as it was too big, but it did give Aurora a more complete cover. Her soft nose was closed involuntarily by pressing into the underside of his chin, forcing her to breathe through her mouth. The warm breath tickled Kratos's neck, sending chill up and down his spine; it took an amazing amount of willpower not to shiver. The saliva in his mouth ran like a thick paste when he swallowed, giving him an uncomfortable feeling. Why did she reduce him to a emotional state. He was an angel, the ultimate being, never feeling, never manipulated, in command. What happened. So he could feel her body heat, so what?

Aurora mumbled in her sleep once more. "Tru-... Kr..? Yes... N-... Onl-... man... may-... able t-... trus-..." Her lips fluttered against his neck, soft as a pair of butterfly wings, fluid as a river, and warm as a fire, all at the same time. A moan vibrated through her chest to his as she came closer. He stiffened and went as solid as a statue. A thick, wet wad of cottonballs made its way down his dry throat.

* * *

When the sun began to rise, Kratos was very reluctant about handing the girl over to the morning, the day, her consciousness. The delicate woman laid on the ground, body spread out gracefully at full length. The wine red eye's onyx pupil scanned slowly over her face. The fragile bend of her forehead, warm nose that would burn him when she pressed it against his neck and chest, her neck the spread elegantly out to her shoulders. He let his eyes roam some more until they subconsciously came to a halt. For a good two minutes, he just kept staring,

And staring,

And staring until he realized just what it was he was staring at. The trail of his sight kept running over the large, but not abnormally huge, curves of her chest. His head shook violently as he looked away. Anna was the only one he could do that to. But, she was gone, and he would never love another woman again. A wistful frown crossed his face as he walked awway from her. A small, unsatisfied sound came from her motionless form. He ignored her and went to sit on the other side of the fire. The heavens reflected perfectly in his red eyes. His thoughts wandered to his family. Finally, Lloyd had appeared so many years later. Was... Anna out there somewhere? Was she alright? Did she long for him like he did for her? The cold heart in his purple covered chest had been shredded and was half-way beating because she died. He knew she was gone. Dead. But a tiny sliver of hope had revived with the discovery of Lloyd. But, wait... Something lost in the vast space of Kratos's mind seemed to come back. Lloyd said his mother was killed by Desians. He was forever seperated from his love. That one cursed sentence ran over and over again through his head.

_Til death do us part._

His only hope was to die with her, and even then, were they already divorced from the minute she died? And it was so hard to die. Especially now since he found Lloyd. He wasn't going to leave without him knowing his past.

Then again, he might be better off not knowing.

But, Anna would've wanted him to know.

Yet, he couldn't bring himself to do it. He just couldn't. What would his son think of him?

A ragged sigh heaved his chest. He could almost feel the slender comforting arms of his Anna around his neck and her soft pink lips rub against his ears, asking him what was wrong.

* * *

_Kratos sat on the edge of one of the cliffs in Asgard, the night sky glimmering above him. He and Anna had been running from the Desians a full year, and now had come full circle. Somewhere along the line, he developed feelings for the Angelus project, but she would never accept him. He was an angel, the reason she was in such a state. _

_The day before, she had been ambushed by a group of Desians a little ways out of Palmacoasta. What posesed her to leave in the first place was beyond him, but regardless, she had been pretty brusied. The purple and black marks painted her pale body. She had been knocked unconcious, so he took her all the way from Palmacoasta to Asgard, making quick use of his wings. When she awoke, he lied and said she'd been out for three days. It was all his fault. The guilt hung over him like a massive lead curtain, leaving his back hunched over and aching. _

_"K-Kratos?" A drowsy voice asked from behind him. He didn't have to turn to recognize who it was. Anna was stumbling towards him with her clothes put on halfway correctly and hair a tumble weed. _

_"Yes Anna?" He asked._

_"W-What're you doing up so la-aa-ah" She stretched her arms wide and yawned deeply. _

_His head looked to the side a little bit, catching the bed-headed brunette in the corner of his eye. "I could ask the same of you."_

_"Couldn't sleep."_

_"Really?" He asked skeptically. _

_She glared, then came and sat behind him since the room beside him was taken up by a two-hundred foot drop. "Are you okay?"_

_"Quite fine actually."_

_"Really? It doesn't seem that way."_

_"I am fine." He snapped. _

_She flinched at his tone. "Y-You don't have to yell." Her beautiful lips curled into a frown. _

_"I am sorry." He sighed._

_The hurt expression left her face to make room for a sympathetic one. Her arms made thier way around his broad shoulders and her head in his neck. "What's wrong?" She asked once more. _

_His heart stopped for a moment. "A-Anna."_

_"Hm?"_

_Out of nowhere, he spun around and pressed her lips against his. She was wide awake now and stiff in his arms, shock written all over her face. Kratos was moving his lips at a worried pace, thinking she didn't want him back. His hands rubbed her back trying to coax her into a response. After a minute of nothing, he began to pull away in defeat. Anna suddenly came back to reality and pulled him closer to her using every ounce of her passion to kiss him back. Thier lips moved against one another's slowly, working hands up thier backs to thier hair. Kratos stopped at her mid back and pressed her chest up against him, relishing in the way it made his heart float. She let out a small moan and tried to come closer, if that was even possible. He reluctantly let his tongue slip through his lips and trace the outline of hers. After making one trip around all of her lips, he gently prodded the line between them for entrance. She trembled a little as she let her mouth part for him. Slowly, his tongue slid in and started to explore her mouth, tasting her. Her body shivered as she moaned a little more intensely into the kiss. When finally niether could continue, they broke apart for air. Panting, Anna leaned her head against his chest._

_"I love you too Kratos." _

_That was the first time he ever felt truly happy._

* * *

"I love you Anna." He murmered to himself, staring at the ground as if she would pop out at any moment.

* * *

Morning came and they all got up a little more groggily than they'd hoped. Well, at least, all of them but one.

"GOOD MORNING!" Delia shouted at the top of her lungs. It was loud enough to cause Kratos to flinch. What the hell was she on?

"Ugh." Lloyd moaned. "Why'd you have to wake me up Delia?" The teen got up, stretched lazily, and yawned deeply, slowly but surely waking up.

"ARGH! D*** BLANKET! BURN!" A fireball was cast onto the purple blanket by a MAD SCIENTIST!!!

...Nah, it was just Genis with a bad case of bed-head.

"Whoa. Uh, what did you do last night Genis? You're hair's a mess." Lloyd commented to his friend's immense dislike. The frizzled mage stuck his tongue out at the red clad swordsman. Raine rolled her eyes.

"Yes, very mature Genis. Now, pick up the blanket."

"Uh... Raine," Genis began, "How am I going to pick up... OH MY FREAKIN' GODDESS! HOW THE HELL DIDN'T IT BURN?!?!?! DEMON BLANKET!!!" He got on his knees and put his hands in his hair. "NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!"

"Stop being so melodramatic." Aurora teased him as she passed. "Do you need me to help again?"

"...Please?" His voice was filled with a pathetic tone. Like a lost puppy's whine. Her eyebrows moved as if she were rolling her eyes.

"Come here fuzzball." She demanded. He reluctantly walked over and waited for the painful process to begin.

"Well," Colette murmered to herself, "I guess we'll break the third seal today. Only one more left..." Her bright blue eyes stared worriedly at the mausoleum, her face as pale as the moon, and her soft blonde hair wavered, like her confidence, in the wind. She felt a tug on her sleeve. She looked down, grateful for a reason to not think about the coming events.

"Can I see your wings?" Delia gazed into her sky blue eyes with her emerald orbs that were filled to the brim with a boundless curiosity that only youth could provide. The blonde smiled and unfurled her pink and purple wings. The same orbs opened wider, this time with immense satisfaction and lust. Her tiny grasping fingers reached out to touch the sparkling appendages of her parnter. One... Two.. Three seconds and her hand went straight through her target. With a gasp, she jerked her hand back in disbelief. The green eyes held more curiosity than before, and her greedy hands wanted to test her wings again. As her white fingertips reached the sparkling mana substance, it went through again.

"Ooooooh." Was her generic and childish response. The Chosen giggled and fluttered them a little more. "Preeeettyyyyyy..." The girl's eyes were transfixed on the glowing wings.

"Time to go!" Raine called. That all to familiar glint was in her eyes as she ascended the steps, leaving her group in the dust.

Genis facepalmed. "Oh boy..."

* * *

After walking twenty minutes up what took Raine five seconds to climb, the group made it to the top.

"F-Finally." Lloyd collapsed at the summit. "Must... sleep. Going to... die... Ugh." He rolled over on his back.

"Get up lazy bum." Genis kicked him in the side.

"Hey!" The teen glared, then rolled his eyes when Genis kept staring straight ahead.

Raine was already oogling at the cold stone walls when they came in. Her cerulean eyes sparkled with archeological mania.

"Look! We're really here! The Balacruf Mausoleum! It's wonderous!!!" Raine shrieked with delight.

Everyone plugged thier ears. Her incesant speeches took on a mumbled hum to everyone else; sighs of relief sounded amongst them.

Delia kept her eyes wide open, drinking in every detail of the intricately carved stone walls and pillars. They were cold to the touch, but a warmth of the ancient people radiated from all sides. It was like she could feel them calling her. Where was it coming from? They walked past many hallways, each getting creepier and creepier. The familiar whispers grew stronger and stronger in Delia's ears as they neared the end. She had her ears plugged. How could she hear it. A few more steps and a barrage of voices rammed into her from the right. She looked to the sound and saw a long hallway stretching into an abyss.

She frowned, confused. Her feet stepped foward cautiously and brought her to the entrance of the corridor. The voices flowed through the hallway like a river, hooked around her waist, and tugged her back. Giving into the calls, she continued walking until the floor fell out from under her.

She landed with a thud on her rear end. The voices were gone, and it was dark. Shakily, she rose to her feet,

_THUD!_

"Ow... Why did you come down here Delia?"

"Genis?" She asked.

"No duh. Now what the heck did you come down here for. We were headed in the opposite direction."

"I... heard voices."

"Voices."

"Yeah."

"...Okay... Uh..." He stared at the pitch blackness that covered Delia. "What exactly did they say?"

She furrowed her brows, and thought of what it was they actually said. "I... don't remember."

"Really?... Well, we're here now, so let's find a way out. Aurora is probably worried sick about you."

"Aurora doesn't care."

"What? I think you've gone crazy Delia. Aurora was worried sick."

"...She was?"

"Yes."

"..."

"Well," Genis tried to look around by craning his neck in the darkness. "We probably need some light." He stood up and took posistion for a fireball spell. "Fireball!" He chanted. Three large fireballs shot forward a bit, illuminating a pile of corpses.

"Ah!" They both shrieked. One of the fireballs caught the bottom of the pile and set it aflame.

With eyes like a deer's in headlights, they looked around the large room they were currently standing in which was illuminated by the burning bodies. Many more piles of rotting people lay there, some reduced to bones, some still quite fresh. Delia cried out and ran to Genis a few feet away. The mage stood frozen there with the child clinging to his arm.

"D-Delia," He stutterd, trying to gently shake her off. "Come on Delia, the faster we find a way out of here, the faster we find the group."

She shook, but let go of Genis's arm. The blood rushed back through his arm, causing him to flinch in pain. "Now," He began, "To find a way out of-"

The ground began to shake, cutting him off. One of the walls began to move. They stared with both confusion and fear. When the loud din of the scraping stone ceased, they waited in an eerie silence.

"Is... that the way out?" Delia asked.

"I don't know, but it's the only way to go." Genis answered. He took a step foward, only to have a bird dart towards him. He only narrowly dodged it. It shireked and came to a halt. It caused some of his hair to blow from his face, uncovering his ears. Delia gasped.

"Y-You're a Desian!"

"Wha-?" Genis turned to of the opening, several more birds joined in, cutting the two kids with thier beaks as they flew in. Genis grabbed a cut on his arm, the blood seeping out from between his fingers. They were shireking as loud as they could, hurting Genis and Delis'a ears. One of the birds came at Delia. Genis tried to snatch her back from it, but she pulled her arm away.

"Stay away!" She cried. By then it was too late, the bird cut her arm and joined its friends once more.

"Delia, I'm not a- watch out!" One of the birds took off at her again, going at a dangerous speed. This hit was meant to kill. Delia snapped her head to look at the oncoming enemy, and used her arms to cover her face. She flinched on what should've been impact time.

"Ah!" Genis had thrown himself in front of her. Delia took down her arms and looked at the boy in front of her. Blood dripped to the floor from his stomach. In one second, he dropped in a pile on the floor. Delia''s green eyes stared down at his body in disbelief.

"Genis!" She knelt down beside him. "Genis!" She shook him. He moaned in agony and rolled over on his side, clutching his stomach.

"G-Get out Delia." He ordered. Delia frowned and got up to face the birds.

She let her eyes stare forward, unwavering. A tiny hand was placed on one of the knives in her belt she had out on by Lloyd that morning. It slipped out easily, and she gripped it with determination.

With a blood-crazed shriek, the birds shot forward.

And Delia took aim.

* * *

Me: Finally. I've been writing this for weeks.

Genis: You SHOULD be working on your 5-10 page paper for your honors class due Thursday.

Me: Don't remind me. T.T

Genis: You don't seem as upset as you were earlier.

Me: That's because I wrote the intro a loooooooooong time ago. Don't remind me about that either, I'm still pissed.

Genis: Okay then! Not reminding you.

Me: That review was patronizing. Anyway. This chapter is dedicated to ShadowVDP because I probably would not still be here if it wasn't for him. He gets a lifetime supply of peanut butter! Lol. Please go check out our one-shot Locket of Love.


	26. Chapter 25

Me: Sorry about the wait guys. This long, I repeat, absence has been as traumatizing to me as it was to you. So, I believe an apology is in order. Sorry guys, assuming you 'guys' are still reading this. You've probably all forgotten about me, but just in case, there's the apology. And, as a consolation, I'm going to try, _try_, to get somewhere between Aurora and Kratos, so, please read and review. This chapter should be review worthy; at least, I hope it will. Oh, and I'm thinking about getting an account on deviant art so I can give you some kind of image of what Aurora and Delia look like. And, during all this time, I've realized that I _need_ this. Fanfiction. It helps me vent since all of my classes are academically based. Well, I'm typing this chapter on the, might I say, rainy ride to Florida. This is a crappy time to drive, but I guess it _would_ be more dangerous to ride on an airplane. I've got… until my batteries run out so..., on with the fic!

Lloyd: … Uh… hi?

Me: He needed _something_ to say ^.^ And no… this chapter does not start out with Delia and Genis. LOL I am evil XD

Aurora slowed her pace as she sensed that something was missing. The natural rhythm of her everyday life had been disrupted. Involuntarily, she turned around, despite the fact that she could see nothing. She frowned slightly, the corner of her mouth bending slightly into a pout. She opened her mouth to speak, but she felt the breath leave her chest and into the stale air of the ruins. She choked a little on her spit before regaining her composure. "Where are Genis and, Delia?" Her voice had a barely detectable pitch change when she said Delia's name.

Kratos was surprised that he didn't notice this beforehand, even though he shouldn't have. For the last hour and a half, Kratos had been mentally castigating himself.

_This behavior is unacceptable. Fraternizing with the enemy, no, the target could get you either incarcerated or killed. There is no explanation for this behavior. _She_ is only an ordinary half-elf, one adopted by a different species by that. Yggdrassil would have no pity for you or the girl. That's it. A girl. Barely into her adult years. What could she, what _would_ she want with you. Sure, she's gotten a little closer, but now that Delia is out of a life-threatening situation, she's more than likely going to reject you if you tried to get anywhere near her. You'd make a pedophile out of yourself. And that other half-elf, Raine, she seems to have a thing for you, no need in causing more animosity amongst the group members than there already is. And, what about Lloyd, if he ever found out you are his father? What would he think of you if you fell in love with Aurora, and Anna. Anna… What would she think, if she could see you from the afterlife? What would she think if you lusted after Aurora or even… took her. No, do not even think of doing _that_ with her. Just look at her. Look at her and see what it is about her that is so special. Look._

He forced himself to stare her down, starting from the top. Her face, it was pale, and fragile, like the reflection of moonlight shimmering on a still lake, so easily disrupted from the lightest of touches. Maybe even his touch. The touch of an angel.

Her neck curved inward at a pleasing angle. A crescent that cut through her throat sharply, yet softly. A brilliant sapphire necklace would lay so delicately on above her cleavage.

Her cleavage… She harbored two larger than decent lumps in her breast. They must be soft, for it is the skin of a mortal woman. Kratos felt himself swallow as he let his insatiable eyes linger on her chest. His hands longed to squeeze them gently. A finger that peered out of his glove twitched. He blinked and forced himself to move on before the tightness in his pants got tenser.

But, then he hit the area where her legs, voluptuous and curvaceous, gloriously met. Expurgate worthy thoughts ran rampant in his head. He had to spread his legs out a little bit, but it just caused more discomfort. Her womanhood. How tight, how wet, how _warm-__**hot-**_

He immediately dismissed these thoughts, and blamed them on the lack of sexual release he'd had in the past twenty years or so. After a while he cooled down and was able to realize that, Aurora shouldn't have been turned around in the first place. Weren't they walking?

"Where are Genis and Delia." She was panicking. The tone was evident in her voice. She began to take a step forward. "I don't hear them, where are they?!" Her facial features spread out across her face in an expression of worry. The rest of the group turned to face her.

"You're right!" Colette exclaimed. "How did we not see them go?!"

Raine hurriedly pushed past Colette and started to dash down the hall, but much to her dismay, Kratos stopped her when he roughly jerked her back by the arm. "Don't be a fool. Rushing into things will get you killed. Now," He calmly let go of her upper arm. Blood circulated painfully when he let go, and the half-elf doubled over and grabbed her arm. What was up with him? Did he go around fighting monsters every day? Oh wait… he was a mercenary, of course he does. Well, he's got one crazy strong grip.

"Man, this bites. We gotta go all the way back there to find them? Can't we just come back after we beak the seal? They'll be okay until then, right?" Lloyd made an awkward frown and tilted his head to the side as his gloved hand scratched the back of his head.

"That would be very unwise. These temples are known reputably for their traps, obstacles, and monsters. And with that assassin still loose-"

Nobody had time to stop Aurora as she instinctively dashed back the way they came. "DELIA! DELIA YOU BETTER ANSWER ME THIS MINUTE!!! DO YOU HEAR ME?!?!?! DELIA!" Her feet pounded relentlessly on the damp stone floor. Her whole head vibrated from yelling Delia's name so loudly and often.

Kratos was the first to react to her precipitate action, the rest followed in his pursuit. Aurora carelessly forgot to watch her step, and ended up setting off a trap. A large stone wall made an unbearable screeching sound of stone grinding against stone. Kratos flinched but didn't break his stride. The others came to an abrupt halt, pushing their hands against their ears as if they would fill their ear holes and block out all other sounds. The six foot two inch tall Seraphim had to bend, tuck, and finally roll and managed to just barely clear the ever decreasing space left between the floor and the wall. As soon as he hit the other side though, his feet deftly sprang up and began another stride, longer than the previous to catch up with the blind woman.

And poor Aurora, she was too preoccupied beckoning for Delia that she didn't listen to her surroundings and…

_WHAM!_

She ran smack dab into the middle of a wall. She let out a cry of pain as she slid painfully onto the floor. Despite her pain stricken body screaming bloody murder trying to tell her to stop, she pushed, or, tried to push herself up. Kratos arrived in time to offer his aid. She attempted to shrug him off, but he was too strong for her to refuse. He put his arms under her elbows securely and gently helped to pull her up.

"That was completely idiotic and unnecessary. I hope you're glad to know that all you've managed to do is separate the group more than it was in the first place. Before you go running off next time, try to make it known to everyone else first. That trap you just set off, I had to steer everyone away from the first time, and you just ruined it." Kratos ranted. Aurora's lips quivered as she leaned limply against the temple trying to catch her breath. They stood there for a moment, in an angry silence until Kratos finished up with. "Don't e_ver_ try that again."

"_Yes sir." _She muttered facetiously.

* * *

A woman, about only five feet tall, sat cross legged seat adjacent to her sweetheart. Her foot twitched impatiently as her seemingly glow-in-the-dark red eyes scanned the off-white room. Seriously, it was like being stuck in a solitary confinement cell inside a mental facility. The corner of her mouth curved into a frown from time to time. She swallowed nervously as the mounting emotions inside her began to become overwhelming.

A smooth hand that lay over hers began to rub the back of her palm in calm, soothing circles. His hair, jet black, partly spiked up, but also sat flat so that it came off in the front of his face in short bangs. His large chest heaved with an exasperated sigh. He had a wide expanse of knowledge of torture methods due to all of the books he read, and he believed that this should be in the top ten. Sitting in a stiff chair across from the creator of all things while your child is out somewhere with limited access to her true powers, no doubt in a dangerous situation and being able to do nothing except stare at a blank wall could definitely be stressful.

Soon enough, the woman's breathing became choppy and uneven. Anxiousness built up from her heart to her throat. Her thoughts had led her to awful conclusions about her daughter's fate, and she couldn't stop herself. After all, there was nothing else to do in that mad room. Said room suddenly felt as dry and hot as the arid deserts that plagued the Triet area. She could feel her airways constricting and her nose clotting up with drying mucus. Nervous sweat formed on her brow, and this cause her spouse to look both concerned and a little frightened.

"Sweetheart-" He began to try and soothe her.

"NO!" She jerked her hand roughly away from his. Her ribcage felt stretched to its limits the heart caged within pounded against it. The girl threw herself to the nearest wall and began to try and make an escape. "Let me out! I can't stand it in this godforsaken hellhole! Please! Please!" She cried, and tear streaks created rivers down her cheeks. The man quickly grabbed her from behind and tried to sedate her.

"Sh,sh… It'll be alright. Just wait." He cooed into her ear, his voice a warm, deep tenor.

She began to say something, but all was lost under the contrasting pitches and wavering whines in her voice, and it all ended up like listening to a little kid try to make a point while he was crying.

Origin rolled his eyes and opened up the door for them. The man's eyes looked over to the god's in a silent 'thank you' in which he received a glare that said 'go, before my generosity runs out'. He sighed as he pulled his wife closer to him and half walked, half carried her to a spot on the monstrous balcony that they were led into. It easily cleared fifty feet in height, and it took them a solid minute to reach the edge embroidered with intricate stone handrails. It overlooked and expanse of water with no end. It was like being stuck on a deserted island, a deserted island with a mansion, that is. The moon made the waves seem to shimmer on the surface of the ocean, and the man took the time to appreciate the view, since escaping that mind-numbing room would probably be a scarce event.

They sat down about five feet from the edge, just on the floor. There were no chairs on the immense hunk of rock surprisingly. The woman sat with her face buried in her husband's chest, and wet the entire front of his outfit. His calloused hands rubbed up and down her back, still failing to do anything about calming her.

"What is wrong my dear. Please, share your sorrow with me." He moved his hands to pet the top of her brunette head.

"A-Aurora, out baby, s-she's out there all alone. I-I want to see her. I-"

"You know that any interaction with her is forbidden."

"But-"

"Shh." He mashed her face to him, the pain of loosing a child to the world apparent in his shining purple eyes. "Shh." He repeated. "What brought all this up?"

"I was thinking." Her voice was muffled by his well toned chest. He cupped his hands around her chin and forced her to face him.

"And what might you be thinking of?" He caught a free tear with the tip of his thumb, caressing her cheek caringly.

"Our baby, she, she's out there, and-and" She choked on her saliva as the waterworks began to start up again. "And- w-without her powers, she can't defend herself. She looks like a half elf. A half-elf! DO YOU KNOW WHAT THEY DO TO HALF-ELVES!?!?" She screamed, and it hurt his ears. "They-they-they beat them, and kill them and kidnap and with the women they r-r-ahhhhhhhhhhh-ah-ah" She was reduced to a mourning pile. It saddened his heart to see his dearly beloved in so much pain. A few tears of his own formed at the corners of his eyes which he promptly wiped away.

"I know, I know…" He stroked the side of her face lovingly. She had no idea how much both herself and their little girl meant to him. He'd never forgive himself if anything happened to them. He wouldn't allow it. Not even Origin himself could touch a hair on their heads. He wouldn't a_llow_ it. Once again, he made his woman look at him. "Listen." He asserted. "Everything, and I mean _everything_ is going to be taken care of. As soon as the Regeneration Journey is over, I'm going to get our child and bring her home. We'll be a family, just like you've always wanted."

"…" She was speechless. She knew he could do what he claimed, but she was a mother. She always had doubts. What she wanted, more than anything in the world, was to see and hold her child. "Ne-r got –ho-er." She whimpered.

He knew how touchy a subject Aurora's birth was to her mother. She had only never once got to hold her nor look at her. He, however, was lucky. As soon as tiny Aurora left the womb, he had to quickly take her, and hide her away. He could still remember the first and only time her touched her. She was so tiny, since she was premature. She had a hard time controlling her new set of limbs as she sobbed, all covered in blood and vaginal fluid. Her mother went unconscious immediately after the delivery, but there was not time to waste. After using a towel to clean his new offspring off, she ceased the crying. Her tiny red lips opened to form a teeny tiny hole, and closed over and over. She made little noises and when he picked her up, her long eyelashes fluttered open to reveal the most gorgeous set of deep blue eyes he had ever seen. They were open wide, staring at her new surroundings. Her mother in a small, one person cot, a table, and an oil lamp which gave off an eerie glow. Then, she stared right into the loving, tear filled purple eyes of her loving father. Her hand, which could fit ten times over in his, reached up endearingly to touch his face. He can still feel her tiny limbs tremble across his closed lids.

That was the only bonding moment they ever had, and he cherished it just as much as the day it happened. His heart was instantly split in half when he felt her reach for him. One half for her mother, and one half for Aurora herself.

Aurora's mother had always envied it, but she never told him. It wouldn't have been fair. He couldn't help that she fell asleep, that she was in labor for two day with no one to help deliver Aurora except her husband.

He sighed.

"What?" She asked apprehensively.

"You're so beautiful, and I can't take you here."

* * *

Kratos and Aurora backtracked to the closest turn, and it had been a while since they had started on the trek down the "never-ending" hallway. Of course, Kratos seemed to be in a cheerful mood… Aurora could imagine the thunder clouds above him, or well, the image of him she conjured up in her mind. If it wasn't for the solid stone ground, Kratos' loud footsteps probably would've broken the floor. He kept eyeing the girl beside him to make sure she didn't go ballistic again. No need in having her disappear, as much as the kids loved her… as much as he- no.

Aurora however, was frantic with worry. Every other step she would rush forward, and then awkwardly move back when receiving a nasty glare from her companion. Her right hand constantly fingered the hilt of her sword, in case something should occur. Her kip twitched, anxious to argue with Kratos to let her go ahead. Somehow, she knew that Delia was in the hallway up ahead, she just knew.

_Kratos._

Kratos heard… Anna?

_Kratos, Kratos please, come to me. It's been so long._

No, it wasn't Anna. He knew of this trap. It made you hear what you wanted to hear most in the world, draw you towards it, and then ensnare you in some kind of trap. He shook his head and increased his pace, totally forgetting that Aurora was just as vulnerable to the trap as he was.

_Aurora! Help!_

"Delia!" Aurora jerked her head towards the voice. Once again, Kratos had to chase the woman down. It didn't take long though. He _does_ have angelic speed, remember? And, angelic strength too, remember? And, despite his efforts to avoid the trap, he ran straight into her and caused both of them to topple over into the trap.

They both fell down a hole about twenty feet deep, and at the bottom, landing in a claustrophobic room surrounded by four solid walls of whatever kind of stone the temple was made of. Kratos ended up on top of Aurora with barely an inch separating their faces. Aurora barely breathed in and out, but Kratos ceased all breathing whatsoever. He reluctantly lowered his head to hers, first their noses touching, and as they slid further down, their lips barely brushed against each other. Both could feel a hot tingling feel running up their spines towards their privates. Kratos realized just how close they were. Her heat seemed intense, and it was like having a fever of 110. His own face grew red from the heat and closeness. Muscles tensed in both people, and as Kratos went to deepen the 'almost' kiss, Aurora could feel his erection through his pants on her thigh. Her eyes flew wide open as she attempted to kick him off.

"Get off me you pervert!" She backed up as far as she could, but their feet still touched. She frowned disapprovingly. "What did you think you were doing?" She asked as her voice skipped octaves.

Kratos paused has he searched for an acceptable explanation. "I was merely being a man. And did you not react according to your gender?" He inquired.

Aurora could feel the heat and dampness between her legs. Her face turned a tomato red as she quickly closed her spread legs. It was so easy for her to react to any kind of interaction with a male after the events she faced in the past. A tear slid down one cheek.

"I-I" She stuttered. "You wouldn't understand." She said, and then turned away from him. Kratos caught her arms before she could get for though.

"What made you this way?" He asked, really concerned. "Why are you afraid to love?" Well if that wasn't the epitome of hypocrisy if he'd ever heard it. It wasn't like he was afraid of the subject himself. But, he was a four thousand year old Seraph, he figured. She shouldn't be like this.

"Nothing." She tried to resist his gripping hands.

"Tell me." He ordered softly.

Aurora sighed, tear threatening to fall from her obsolete eyes. "Well…"

Kratos raised his head in anticipation for an answer.

"I guess we have enough time." Her shoulder's drooped , and she began her story.

"A few years ago, I met a man named Ryudo."

"The one we met in Palmacoasta?" He asked, or rather, interrupted.

"Yes."

…

"Anyway, he was the son of a wealthy couple in Asgard. I met him while I was still having a hard time traveling, still relying upon the kindness of strangers and nature's mercy. It was somewhere near the altar. He approached me and offered me a place to live. His family, of course, had plentiful rooms in their house."

Kratos couldn't help but wonder if she meant the two story house on one of the steeper parts of the gorge. It made his stomach churn to think she walked along that scrawny piece of land that the house left behind. He pushed the thought of her falling off far from his mind.

"I lived there for quite a while, and fell in…" She hesitated. "_Love _with Ryudo." She swallowed as her own stomach became sick at the thought that she ever had feelings for _that _man. "After he "proposed" to me, he took me to the local doctor to check my fertility. The doctor said that there was something blocking the way to my womb, and there was nothing he could do about it." A few more tears slid down her cheeks. "As much as I wanted a child, I moved on, and for a time, I was happy. All around us were people wishing us a long and happy marriage. Ryudo's parent s gave him enough money to go to Palmacoasta with me for the actual marriage ceremony. But, as soon as we stepped into Palmacoasta, Ryudo became a different person. He began to drag me to unpleasant places, started seeing people, who in my opinion, had no moral character, and we never got married. Not once did he speak of our engagement. It didn't take long to figure out his real intentions for me. I became his prostitute." She curled up, pressing her knees against her chest and wrapping her hands around them. "He would tell the clients to 'do what you want with her'. Most of them were drunks, and ended up raping me harshly then beating me, cursing like sailors. I-I still have scars from some of them." Her head tilted down.

Kratos could feel his temper flare up. He couldn't imagine the awful things she'd been through, especially when she told him 'raping me harshly'. He couldn't fathom how or why someone would want to do that to her. In his mind, he could see Aurora's tiny, frail body being pounded by other men, and her having to sit there and endure it, teeth clenched.

Even now, Aurora felt violated, obscene, vulgar. Harsh memories flooded her mind took her back to the first time she was forced to have sex with some strange man. A cold spell swept through here womanhood as if cold fingers were feeling around it. A slight whimper escaped her lips as she shivered.

"Let me see them." Kratos ordered involuntarily.

"See what?"

"The scars."

Slowly and cautiously, Aurora spread her legs and gently lifted up her shirt up to the bottom of her bra. Even in the limited light, Kratos could see that dark bruises that adorned her stomach. He gasped silently. With gentle hands, he ran a few cool fingers across the warm purple stop. It was about the size of a foot and he could tell it had done some damage to her internal organs.

"That one's from Ryudo, actually." She spoke softly, as if she was reminiscing. She sighed. His hands felt so good on her skin. "He'd brought me back from a meeting with a 'client', and when he began to force me to undress again, I refused. He pushed me down onto the carpet, on my side, and began to kick me, over and over again, cursing me to hell for my disobedience. I was so scared then…" She laid her hand on his, and then removed it from her stomach. "That's why I can't eat as much as you guys do."

Let that man be damned. Kratos balled up his fists. He _would _kill that man if it was the last thing he ever did.

…

"How did-"

"Don't tell anyone." Aurora pleaded.

"What?" Kratos furrowed his fiery brows.

"Don't tell the others."

He was a little reluctant to comply, but, "Alright…" And he waited for her to fall asleep before carrying her back up the shaft. He thanked whoever was listening that Aurora didn't discover the human remains in the corner.

* * *

"Delia! Help! You have to do something! Use your daggers! Anything!" Genis covered his head with his scrawny white arms in a petty attempt to block the oncoming birds' razor sharp beaks.

"B-But! You're a bad guy!" She frowned, confused and upset. She had too much pressure on her to be so little. How was she supposed to judge the situation when she could barely judge her own actions? But, she knew what to do as soon as millions of tiny bleeding slits appeared on the now screaming Genis' face and arms. The little girl quickly grabbed at one of her knives and tugged on it. It was stuck, so she went to another and pulled it out with better results. She had it in a vice grip and began to hack and slash at the birds. Horrible screeching sounds created a resounding cacophony throughout the room as she madly flailed the knife in front of her. She kept doing this until only a few were left, and then she actually began to _aim_ before she hit.

Her hands shook as she dropped the knife and it clattered to the floor. Her own blood mingled with that of Genis and birds. In one motion she fell back on her butt and propped her hands up under her. She lazily turned her head to stare at Genis, and her bright green eyes widened when she saw him unconscious and bleeding profusely on the floor. Her knees and hands scuffed across the floor as fast as they could to reach him.

"Genis!" She pushed him. "Wake up Genis! We gotta go get Aurora and Raine! Wake up!" She kept pushing him until he rolled over on his stomach and revealed a golden hair band that had been under him the whole time. And from the band came… voices?

_Delia…_

_..Delia._

_.Delia.._

_Delia…_

_Come, come and take us. _

They whispered and cooed into her ears. She glared at it curiously, and the longer she did, the louder were the voices.

_Pick it up. _

_Go ahead._

_This… is where your destiny begins…_

"Destiny?" She asked to no one, the air. She flinched when she grabbed it, expecting some kind of something to, well, do something. The voices ceased as she slipped it onto her head. The metal, forged into a vine and leaf design, flattered the curvy dome of her shiny black hair. Then she turned back to Genis. He coughed up some blood as he awakened.

"Genis!" She exclaimed. "Genis! C'mon! We gotta go. We gotta get Raine to fix you! Come on!" She tugged obstinately on his arm, but to no avail.

"Go Delia." His voice was hoarse and he coughed up even more blood. "You have to go. There's no way I'll be able to-" More blood spilled from his mouth before he could finish the sentence.

"No! You have to come too." She frowned, crossing her arms in a cute fashion.

"Go Delia, now, or I will die."

The words were harsh to a child, but he had no other choice. She would stay here and perish as well if she didn't go. With tears streaming down her face, Delia got up.

"I'm sorry I called you bad." She cried. "I-I didn't mean it." She begged forgiveness.

"It's okay Delia. I promise. Now go and get Raine. I'll be fine." He took short, sharp breaths in between each of his sentences, as if emphasizing his weariness.

"Promise?" She asked.

"Promise. Oh, and Delia."

"What?"

"You did well out there, but those knives are for throwing." He chuckled.

"Oh." She put a finger to her lip. And with that, Delia dashed away from him.

"Ah Lloyd." Genis sighed. "If only I were like you, then I could get up and go as well." The broken half-elf turned on his side and curled into a ball, awaiting his rescue.

Delia started into a hallway and after a few steps, arrows shot out of the wall as fast as any bullet could manage. She shrieked in surprise. As soon as the shock wore off though, she was at it again. After spying holes in the walls, she sprinted past them before the arrows could pierce her tiny body. It took as few minutes, and her body was drained of its energy by then. She collapsed against the wall, then her a loud crash from the opposite side of the room. Her eyes flew wide.

"Genis!" She called, and then the tears came pouring out. The door that had let the birds in, closed with a loud bang, and Genis' fate was quite literally, sealed. But this released a mechanism that opened the door for Delia to escape. The girl fell into the other side, yelling, screaming, crying, and calling for Genis. It was her fault and she just knew it. She caught the Colette Disease and started shouting random 'I'm sorry's" as she rolled on her back. Guilt had filled to the brim, and now, spilt from her eyes.

* * *

Raine's head snapped up and her whole frame froze. Her eyes showed white all around her iris and glazed over as if she were a deer in headlights. "Genis." She barely whispered.

"Professor?" Lloyd asked concernedly.

"Something, something's wrong with Genis. I know it. We-We've got to hurry. Genis. Genis!" And the once mighty professor finally broke down and was reduced to a pile of clothes, sweat and tears.

"Oh professor." Colette cried along with her teacher. She apologized seven fold for something she didn't do, and wasn't even sure had really happened. But, she felt that she was obligated to apologize. She was the Chosen after all, and she was used to having all of the blame put on her anyway. Besides, if it could make Raine feel any better, she would be more than happy to comply with anything that making her happy required her to do.

Me: LOL! Another cliff hanger! Will Genis die? Will Genis live? What's with that random part with Aurora's parents for? What is that freaky head band? Why did the chicken cross the road? What is the square root of pi? Why am I asking these stupid questions?! I HAVE NO IDEA!

Lloyd: Seriously, you should consider going to a psychiatrist.

Me: How do you even know what a psychiatrist is? It has more than five letters so its strictly out of your vocabulary.

Lloyd: … Good point.

Me: Well, anyway, I'm in Florida, and this is my last night over at my grandparent's 23rd floor condo. It's very nice. They have a window wall that looks _right over the Tampa Bay._ It's amazing, and they even have binocular I can spy on people with. We just got back from the Nutcracker ballet, and it was wonderful. It was showing at the Performing Arts Center in Tampa; it's one of the finest in the world too. Please consider this chapter my Christmas present to you. And what I want for Christmas is reviews! ^.^ I know you guys think asking sounds rude, but it gives me motivation as a writer to know that people find this story worthwhile. Also, I tried to improve my writing over the past few months, so I hope this chapter is a little better than the others. Feel free to comment, complain, and criticize. I'm ready for all the advice I can get so I can make this story more enjoyable for everyone. Thanks again for taking the time to read the new chapter, and have a very **Merry Christmas!!!**


	27. Chapter 26

**ATTENTION!!! Please read the following even if you usually skip introductions.**

Me: Hey guys! It's me again. Thanks for the reviews, but there wasn't much feedback on the content, though it's probably just because I lost some readers. That's not surprising since I've been away for a while. I've got some announcements I'd like to make, if nobody has read my profile or got a letter (which I sent to all of the people with Pain on their favs) and a few other announcements that you didn't receive and are more recent. So… Onward! To copy and paste!

Lloyd: Lazy.

Me: You're one to talk.

Lloyd: …

Me: Okay let's see here… (digs through a huge pile of papers) Ah!

Hey guys. Sorry about the lack of updates on Pain Neverending, but the most recent is really good to make up for it. I made sure. I promise I will try to get them out faster. But, in the meantime, I would enjoy reviews. They make me happy . Well, this is my last day in sunny Florida and tomorrow I'll be on my way home. Hope all you guys out there have a Merry Christmas! (I hope you knew about the new chapter already. If not, LEAVE! GO BACK TO THE PREVIOUS CHAPTER RIGHT THIS MINUTE YOUNG LADY/MAN!!!)

Yggy: Did someone call me?

Me: No, I was just talking to the reviewers. I just had to say LADY/MAN so it would make sense to whoever is reading this.

Yggy: Oh. Well, back to stripping pole and my adoring fans! La la la la la!

All: O.o

Me: Uh… Moving on.

Be sure to participate in my forum and poll. Especially the forum. As long as the central topic is Pain Neverending, I don't mind some friendly chatting. In fact, I encourage it. And this might be a way for me to communicate with my fans better and get a little more in touch with them.

Me: Yes! PLEASE participate in my forum. I, am a very lonely person, and would enjoy talking to you guys. It would give me an opportunity to introduce myself properly. Okay, next

HEY!! I've got an account on deviantart now, (and I'll give you one guess at what my username is...) but I can only upload cartoon drawings that I draw on paint right now since I do not own a scanner sadly. :( But, just to let you know, my hand drawn black and white pencil drawings are WAY better than the ones I've posted so far. Feel free to look and bash them. I know they need it ;) Oh, and I am going to do drawings of Aurora and Delia, and I'll take any requests on certain scenes/poses. Maybe now you'll have a clearer image in your mind when you read now too. Oh, and if you're reading this, PLEASE PLEASE PLEAZE!!... go on my forum. :D It will make me a vewy happy giwl.

And yes, I meant to put a Z in the last please .

Me: YES! The forum the forum the forum… (cackles maniacally) Um… er… yes, on with the fic!

* * *

"Hurry with the machine! This project is critical and I need it finished ON TIME! Understand?!" A red faced, blue haired half-elf screamed in the face of one of his employees.

"Y-yessir, b-but, surely you can spare us some time." Another half-elf, shorter than Yuan, glanced over to the left, avoiding eye contact with his superior. His hand tapped their fingers together as a hot nervous sweat formed in the collar of his lab coat. "You know that what you're suggesting is almost impossible-"

"IMPOSSIBLE is NOT in my vocabulary!" Yuan tensed up, then sighed irritably. "Tell me, do you enjoy your job?"

"O-of course sir!"

"Do you know how important it is for you to get that machine up and running by the end of the Regeneration Journey?"

The man frowned, no quite sure as to what his boss was getting at. "Um." He swallowed.

"IF you don't get your job done, you, your family, and everyone else in the universe will _die_. Now do you realize how vital this is to my plan?"

"Y-yes sir. I do sir." The man cowered partly from his seething boss, and partly from his newfound burden. Having countless lives depend on you wasn't something you took lightly. His watery eyes wandered over to the circular gate in the corner of the room which was hooked up to thousands of wires and other blinking and blipping machines. Lights seemed to never stop flashing, and the place was always lively.

"Good." And with that, Yuan promptly left the premises.

Then the professor turned from the doorway in which his employer left, and to his awaiting team of colleagues. "Well boys. Get ready to finish this puppy. We have some lives to save." He said, trying to boost the morale, but all he received were pale, sweaty faces of people who had to build a machine right out of science fiction in just a few weeks or so. And their success could mean a difference to millions of lives.

Yuan stepped out into the dry Triet air and took a deep breath as he spread his sparkling purple wings. "Well Kratos. Let's see how well you can protect your party." He mused, and took off to the northeast. _____________________________________________________________________________________

"So… what now?" Lloyd asked dumbly as he stared down the empty tunnel.

"Find Genis!" Raine blurted out. "Find him find him!" The stress of losing her brother made itself apparent all over her face. Her icy colored eyelids were as wide as they could go without letting her eyes fall out, and her hair seemed to curl up by itself. They hadn't even done anything remotely active in the past five minutes and her orange over coat was incorrigibly wrinkled due to her clenching her twitching fists around it.

"Professor, where would we search?" Colette's expectant eyes stared into her teacher's frantic ones, ready for guidance.

"W-Well." The professor tried to get her thoughts together. "Maybe we should just go forward, since there's no way to get back from here."

"I guess that makes sense…" Lloyd mumbled. "Maybe we should break the seal first. That may reset all of the traps. That way we can go find Genis!" He raised a fist in the air.

"Good idea Lloyd." Colette beamed, which made Lloyd withdraw his fist and make his face glow the color of his least favorite food.

"Uh… yeah. Thanks Colette." He stumbled through the sentence as he tried to thank the Chosen.

"I hope we can do this though, jus the three of us…" She lowered her head in doubt. She felt unworthy of the strength placed upon her shoulders, and believed that without her friends, breaking this seal would be impossible.

"Of course we can do this on our own! With my close combat training, your long range attacks, and the Professor's healing magic, this seal should be no problem." Arms akimbo, he puffed out his chest.

"For once Lloyd, I hope your right." Raine played with her hands nervously.

"Okay then. Let's go." And the teen swiftly turned and walked down the hall. The two girls were left behind. Colette looked to her teacher and was distressed over the fact that _she _was distressed, which, of course, helped nothing.

"I'm sorry." Colette mumbled apologetically.

"Don't be Colette, this wasn't your fault. Come on; let's catch up with Lloyd before he gets into mischief." The orange clad professor sniffed and wiped away a tear as she headed down the hall. This shocked the angel to her very core. Never once in her life had she seen her teacher shed even _one _tear.

Never.

* * *

Delia ran down the corridors blindly with salty tears streaming down her face and into her open mouth. She kept calling Aurora's name over and over, but no one answered.

_Delia…_

"STOP!" She cried to the voices. "Stooooooop!" She pleaded.

_Come now Delia, there's no need to fuss. Just listen…_

"NO! Go away!" She pulled at her hair.

_Don't be difficult, or there _will _be consequences._

"I don't care, AH!" She shrieked as an electric shock spread through her body, immobilizing her. She fell to the floor on her hands and knees and was forced to crawl. "Ow! Stop! Make it stop!" Sobs racked her little body. "Why are you hurting me?" Her pained voice asked, desperate to end the suffering.

_Listen and it will stop._

The voice calmly replied.

"O-Okay." Delia whimpered. Silent tears gently slid down her face now as some hiccups made her bounce occasionally.

_Good. Now, you know a woman named Aurora._

"U-Uh Huh." Delia swallowed and stuttered.

_Okay, now, tonight, or the next night you see her, stay awake by her side. _

"O-k-kay." Her little body shook violently as she attempted to stand upright. She waited in a tense stance for another onslaught of pain, but it never came. As soon as she concluded it safe to run again, she did just that. Once again, Aurora's name echoed through the dark and empty halls of the labyrinth.

Finally, Delia was faced with the decision, left, or right. She looked frantically both ways, torn in half over the decision. What if one of the halls led to Aurora, and she took the wrong one. What if she ran into a trap. What if… She cut herself off there. She ended up going left.

Bad mistake.

Suddenly but subtly, all went black, and Delia felt the floor disappear underneath her. Her scuffling ceased and was replaced with sounds of… hissing?

Snakes!

She abhorred snakes.

Delia flailed her arms around her in search of some safe harbor to grab onto. Her right hand brushed up against something and she reflexively clamped her hand around it. It was squishy, and smooth. A scream erupted from her mouth as she realized just what she had grabbed. A sharp, stinging pain seemed to pinch her arms as she released the snake. Now her left hand landed against a rock, and she grabbed onto it this time.

As she steadied herself, she prayed aloud that the snake wasn't poisonous. When the reality of the situation finally sunk in, she cried, and not just a cry of disparity, but one of hopelessness and solitary. This was a cry of genuine hurt and loss, and in that moment, Delia knew she was alone.

* * *

Ryudo had finally ditched his group in search of his money making prostitute. He'd thought she was dead. Luckily for him, there was a chance for him to make big bucks again. He smiled to himself as he absent mindedly flipped a piece of gald with his thumb.

"Soon," He chuckled to himself. "I'll have a lot more of you in my possession."

The cool air of the Asgard region tingled on his face, and he narrowed his eyes to see the city he was approaching. The tell tale gorge branded it as the city of Asgard, the place where he came from. He couldn't believe he was back here again. Good thing he ditched Millennia back in Palmacoasta, or his parents would've questioned him.

The shadow of the city's welcoming arch passed over his spiky haired head as he walked into the hustle and bustle of tourists. It seemed his hometown had been busy enough without him. He wondered how his parents' souvenir shop was doing. It looked like they still owned the house since his mother's decorations still adorned the miniscule scrap of land they called a yard. It always bugged him how they still stayed put on the very edge with the harsh winds that blew through the canyon. Did his mom bolt them down or something?

He shrugged to himself and approached an oncoming villager.

"Excuse me." He tried to attract the man's attention. He was waddling across the ground trying to see past the mound of collectibles in his arms. "Sir." Ryudo tried again.

This time, the person stole him a quick glance, but shook his head and continued on his way. Ryudo sent him a nasty glare behind his back. How dare he ignore him! Oh well. He grunted and went off to find another person.

He searched all through the afternoon without finding one person who knew about the whereabouts of his missing prostitute. Frustrated, he plopped down in a single seat booth at the local bar and ordered himself a shot of potion. It was served by a rather busty woman with curly brown hair and a pair of ruby red lips to match her inflated backside. She made sure to bend down as far as she could so that Ryudo had a straight shot look down her low cut dress. He blatantly ignored her breasts and stared down at his brass colored drink.

"Hmph." She frowned.

He ignored her.

"Ahem." She cleared her throat officiously.

Ryudo sighed. "Yes?" He asked sarcastically.

"Well," She crossed her arms under her chest so that it protruded outward more than usual. "It took long enough to get your attention."

"And now that you have it?" Ryudo rolled his eyes.

"Is something bothering you?" _You didn't even glance at my chest. _She glowered at the thought.

"As a matter of fact," The man sat up straighter, causing the woman to spike her interest. "Have you happened to seen a woman in a blue shirt with brown hair and a bandana over her eyes? She was traveling in a large group."

The waitresses' shoulders sunk. "Uh, yeah. They left towards the ruins just a day or two ago." She pursed her lips in disappointment. "So, what did you need her for?"

Ryudo raised an eyebrow. "I just need her to repay some long overdue debts, that's all."

The girl's eyes widened. "So um…"

Ryudo smirked, knowing that she must be new to the biz. "So, fifty gald?"

"W-What?" She stuttered. "Oh no, the shot was only-"

"Fifty gald." He said again suggestively.

"Oh!" She exclaimed, finally getting what he was saying. "S-Sure. Fifty's fine."

"Okay then. Now, where are we conducting our business?" He asked.

"Follow me." Was all she said as she hurried to the stairs in the corner of the bar, partly secluded by a thin wall. Ryudo grinned slyly. He figured a night of pleasure would be acceptable until he could find his original slave. Forgetting his shot of cheap potion, he followed the round girl upstairs to one of the empty rooms.

A girl bartending leaned over to her friend across the table.

"Looks like Lisa finally got a customer." She smirked.

Her friend laughed. "She's a virgin, isn't she?"

A scream came from upstairs.

"Not anymore."

* * *

Kratos carried the half-elf bridal style as he walked down the hallways, his footsteps echoing in the distance. He just hope he didn't step on another,

_Click_

Trap.

He grunted as he dodged oncoming arrows with superhuman speed, and used one hand to push his way under a collapsing door. He'd lost count of how many traps they'd been through now. Eight? Twelve? And now, both his and Aurora's clothes were wrinkled and halfway pulled off. She, in fact, had piles and piles of dust in her now nightmarishly tangled hair, and even more dirt covered her face. He resisted the urge to clean it up. The last thing they needed was him sitting and gawking at her like a bumbling idiot.

He set that aside and focused on getting them out of this medieval torture place.

On top of this, his mind was racing in one thousand directions which made it harder for him to concentrate on avoiding traps. Giving up. He sat down in the middle of the hallway to sort out his thoughts.

_Click_

DA-

And that was all he could think of as a veil of blackness filled his vision.

* * *

The room was cavernous, maybe even monstrous. A slim circle of walkway surrounded a giant flaming pit of eternal fire. Two brass cages chained from the ceiling swung dangerously low to the flames. With each second, a winch lowered them a few more inches towards their fiery demolition. In the cage to the left, his one and only son Lloyd, screamed, but didn't scream. His mouth was open, forming his name, but Kratos heard nothing but the gunfire like crackle of the bonfire.

In the other cage sat Aurora. Her body curled up in a ball of defeat, knowing that her fate was sealed. How could she win over him?

It was then the Seraphim noticed two balconies which looked over their respective cages. The one over Lloyd held his beloved wife Anna.

"Anna!" He tried to yell. "Anna!" But even his own voice was lost over the flames. He couldn't even hear himself _think_. "ANNA!" He tried one last time, but to no avail. He gritted his teeth and forced himself to look at the second balcony.

A man and a woman embraced each other lovingly, but in a morose way. The woman had her head concealed by the man's chest, and the man's face concealed by her hair. From the way their bodies jerked, he could tell they were crying.

Then, a pillar seemed to rise out of nowhere with an undistinguishable silhouette perched upon its tip. Kratos felt something wet on his face. His hand involuntarily flashed to it. Reluctantly, he let his hand leave his face so he could observe what was on his hand. A… tear? But he hadn't cried in so long. A mocking voice whispered in his ear.

"Choose. Choose or they _both_ burn in hell."

* * *

Kratos jerked up from his spot and started feeling around his face. It was dry, and his surroundings had changed from that demonic fire pit to the cold, damp, empty halls of the Asgard ruins. His breathing was increased tenfold as well as his heartbeat. That wasn't something he was used to. As his mind unwound itself from the previous event, it had sense enough to check the area for anything that could've caused him to pass out, but he had a pretty good idea of what did it. His wine eyes scanned a golden dust layered floor.

"Unicorn horn powder." He muttered. The only thing potent enough to put even a Seraph to sleep. He sighed irritably. This was a longer pause in their trek than he'd originally planned, and he hadn't even sorted his thoughts out yet. Only put more in to organize.

A whimpering sound came for the side across from him. He looked up to see Aurora with her knees clutched to her chest and a tear-streaked face.

"Aurora?" He began.

She gasped, trying to back away, but only hitting the wall. Kratos stared confusedly at her.

"Auro-"

"Did you?!" She asked, the strain of holding back tears leaking into her voice.

"Did I what?" The angel felt his head move back in confusion.

"D-Did you- you-" She stumbled for words.

And finally, it hit him. The way she looked, her clothes raised up to her belly, hair a tangled mess, and her sword attached a little awry. And he probably landed on top of her when he passed out.

"No!" He blurted.

She flinched.

"No." He assured her. "I didn't. The trap just, it just-" He shook his head while searching for words to explain their position.

She nodded shakily and stood up. "Alright. We need to find Delia." She said. "I want to hurry. I-I- This place, the place itself- it just seems- evil." She shuddered. "I don't like it."

"Me either." Kratos concurred. "Now. Let's keep moving."

They walked side by side this time, and finally, luck seemed to be on their side. For another hour, no traps were triggered and no monsters crept in the corridors. It wasn't long before Kratos head a far away voice, crying its heart out, but dying quickly. It _must _be Delia.

* * *

Just like she was dangling over the pit, Delia's mind dangled over the choice of letting go. Surely no one would find her. It was too dark and out of the way, and her voice was getting hoarse by the second. Why not just end it now. Then, the numbness in her arm would go away. Sure, it would be a painful death, but agonizing over it would on prolong her suffering.

But what if Aurora did find her? She figured she came too far to give up now. Especially after surviving a near death experience so recently. She owed this to Aurora, for if she didn't exist, neither would she.

And just like she told her mother on Sunday mornings, she told herself.

Just five more minutes.

* * *

"Come on." He grabbed Aurora's tiny wrist and jerked it along without warning. She tried to keep up so the pain in her arm would subside, but the mercenary was just too fast.

"Slow down! You're hurting me." She announced. He slowed his stride, but never broke it, and still had to pull her along with him. He quickly found their way to the dark room with a pit full of snakes and a dangling Delia. Even he had to stop, blinded by the absence of any light, but that didn't stop Aurora. Who needed light when you had sound? She tore free from Kratos' grip and dove into the pit.

"DELIA!" She cried, wrapping her arms around the child on contact. But, instead of saving her, Aurora just put both their lives in jeopardy as they hit the rock solid floor, all the while, snakes encumbering them.

"Aurora!" Kratos yelled himself. His mind was split, teetering on the decision to save them,

With his wings.

* * *

Me: Yet, another cliff hanger. This whole mausoleum part was meant to be suspenseful, and I think I'm gonna pull it off. This chapter was was supposed to be short so one, I didn't rush the story, and two, it was just to give you a glimpse into what all of the characters were doing at the moment.

On another note, I've already posted a picture of Aurora and Delia on my deviantart account, so if you want to get an idea of what they look like, just go and see. Now, I did that haphazardly because it just dawned on me that my grandpa had a scanner within about the last thirty minutes of my stay. I assure you that I will post better ones and I do take requests, like I've already said. And, if you haven't guessed yet, my pen name on deviantart is DragonLady24. If you have an account on there too, please comment on my artwork. I have more than just my OC's posted. Oh, and I almost forgot! Please review! Even if you're not a part of the Fanfiction community, I would greatly enjoy your input! And the forum. If you are a member, please humor me by going to the forum.


	28. Chapter 27

Me: Hello again dear readers! I hope you all had a good Christmas/Hanukkah/Kwanzaa/any other holidays I forgot to mention! Thank you soooooooooooooooooooooooooooo so so so much Avisu for coming to my forum! Now I don't feel so lonely. And thanks for the reviews too! Some of my old readers reviewed and it seems I have more readers! Thanks so much for the support guys.

Lloyd: Uh… you okay? Your face is a little green.

Me: Yeah. I'm fine, I just feel a little nauseous. Sorry if this chapter's a little short guys. I haven't planned it out yet, and I'm feeling sick so, just a fair warning.

Genis: RUN! It's the plague all over again!

Me: -.-'

Lloyd: Ahhhhhhhhhhh! PLAGUE!!!

Me: He probably doesn't even know what a plague is.

* * *

Chapter 27: I Remembered to put a Title this Time :D!!!

Colette walked alongside Lloyd closely, so her conversation with him wasn't overheard by the Professor. She frowned at the floor as if she were talking to it instead.

"Do… Do you think Genis will be okay? Do you think he _is _okay?" She asked wearily.

"Of course!" Lloyd reassured her with one of his famous mile wide grins. "He's Genis. He'll figure something out."

"Right." Colette tried to sound somewhat relieved, but her red clad crush could tell that she had a great fear for her friend's safety. Despite his words of comfort, no consolation found her in the desolate ruins. Everything around her was cold, silent,

Dead.

She shivered at the thought Genis' body laying face down on the floor with velvety blood pooling around him.

"Don't die." She whispered.

"What?" Lloyd asked? A frown creased his brows.

"Nothing." She looked up at him with a faux smile.

His mouth bent in disagreement, but he decided not to push her. No need in putting more stress on her shoulders than there already was.

…

"This is my fault." She mumbled.

"What?" Lloyd asked, utterly shocked at her statement. "This is so not your fault. How could you even think that? Genis just got lost, that's all. He's probably, I dunno, drooling over some ancient statue or something. Just killing time until we find him."

"Yeah. I guess." Colette sighed. "How do you stay so strong Lloyd?"

"What?"

"You say what like Colette says sorry." Raine called from behind them." What are you two up to?" She asked.

"Um… Nothing." Colette grinned at her.

Raine crossed her arms, but left the two to their chatter.

"Anyway," Lloyd drew the blonde's attention back to himself. "Me, strong? Are you kidding? I'm nowhere near as good as Kratos is, and _he's_ strong."

"Maybe in physically." Colette smiled up at him for a minute, causing Lloyd to grow hot under the collar. "But, you never give up. Even when things never seemed to go as planned, you're always looking on the bright side of things. How do you do it? I wish I could."

"Well, uh…" The dazed teen scratched the back of his head. "I um… well… I don't know really. But I know that if you always think things are bad, then… they are bad. Right? So if there's _something _good to think about, then nothing is completely hopeless… right?" Lloyd kept doubling back on himself through the whole explanation, but its meaning wasn't lost to his significant other.

"Wow Lloyd. I never thought of it that way." She put a finger to her lips in concentration.

Lloyd blinked his eyes in disbelief. "Uh… really? I just thought that you would've known that since, you know, you're so much smarter than me."

"What?" Colette looked at him incredulously. "I'm not smarter than you."

"Of course you are. Everyone's smarter than me."

The Professor snickered in spite of herself.

"No they're not." Colette shook her head. "You are smart."

Lloyd ' pfft'ed. "I'm not smart. I'm not like Genis or the Professor. All of those numbers with the letters and, good and well and, 1537 circa somthin'. I just don't get it."

"I don't either."

"But." Lloyd stopped for a moment. "You always get good grades."

"I um…" She blushed madly. "I uh… I cheat."

Lloyd's eyes about popped out of his head. "You WHAT!?"

"Shhh! Sh! Please! The Professor might hear!" She cupped both hands over his mouth while his voice was still mumbling through a list of interjections. When he finally quieted down, she released her death grip on his face.

"You! **YOU **cheated?!" He whispered harshly.

"Nobody would've understood if they knew…" She looked down at her feet with a sense of being unfit for society.

"What do you mean? I mean. You're the last person out of _anyone _that I would've thought would cheat."

"I know."

"Then why did you do it?"

"Well. I'm the Chosen."

"So, since you're the spirit of all the good in the world, you… cheat?"

"Yes."

"… I knew I was stupid."

"No! No. That's what everyone else probably thought too."

"Psh. Yeah right."

"It is! I did it because I was the Chosen. I did it because… people believed in me. Believed that I could save the world. If I couldn't solve a simple equation, how could I possibly save the world?..." She frowned. "I'm not proud of it." She stated. "But, if it offered comfort to the people of Iselia then… I guess it was worth it." Her thumbs played with each other nervously as she waited for a comment from the dumbfounded teen swordsman.

"You know."

She looked up at him frantically, searching for some form of compassion and understanding that she knew she could only find in him.

"I never thought of it that way."

They both chuckled. And Colette brushing her cold hand up against his.

"Thank you Lloyd."

"For what?"

"For being there for me. I think you're the only person who'd understand me. That was a lot of burden you took off of me. So, thank you."

"Um… you're welcome." He blushed and averted his eyes from her to the light coming from the end of the tunnel.

"Colette…"

"Yeah Lloyd?"

"I-I see a light… At the end of the tunnel…" He took one step forward. "It's calling me home…" Two, and then he dashed for the white light, waving his arms in the air the whole way. "I'm-a comin' Momma! Make-a sure de pasta iz still warm-a!"

"NOOOOOO! DON'T GO INTO THE LIGHT!!!!!" Colette screeched.

…

Me: Okay… so that didn't really happen. But, you know it would've been funny. Especially in slow mo. _Everything's _better in slow mo.

Uh… right then. Back to the story. Roll the film! I mean… Paper! *claps hands*

"I think were at the seal."

"Already?" Her voice skipped a few octaves. A few forming tears stung her eyes as a burning in the pit of her stomach made her nauseous. Her time in Sylvarant was nearing its end. She couldn't bear an eternity without her home, or friends, or… Lloyd… Her heart jumped at his name, but she quickly pushed her thoughts aside. Her wants and needs didn't matter. She had to do this, or there wouldn't be a home or friends or Lloyd to go back to, even if she quit.

"Are you okay Colette?"

"Y-yeah. I'm just nervous about the fight since all of our friends aren't here." She stuttered trying to lie her way through an explanation.

"Don't worry. I'm here to protect you. Nothing will touch you as long as I'm around." He boasted as he drew his twin blades from their sheaths. "Now let's break a seal!"

"Thank you Lloyd… for believing in me." Colette whispered, and then called on her wings and drew her weapons as well.

* * *

"Huff, huff, huff." Sheena put her hands on her knees as she finally cooled down from being confronted. Smoke from her ninja smoke bomb burned her nose and lungs as she panted, sweat dripping down her face. Fighting, or… running really, always did a number on her. "Stupid, huff, temple, huff." She tried to regain her breath in deep gulps of air, but all it seemed to do was choke her.

She coughed and hacked on her spit a little before finding the strength to stand upright.

"Alright then. Let's see. If I came from there… uh, no… there… um…" Her fingers switched from five different passageways branching off from the star shaped room she escaped to. "Argh! I'm NEVER using a smoke bomb to get away EVER again! Ah… calm down Sheena, you're yelling at yourself. Now… I guess we'll just have to start, with one hallway at a time… so I choose…"

She covered her face with one hand and made a pointer with the other. After taking short, staccato steps in a circular motion, she set her feet down flat on the floor, and reluctantly spread her fingers apart, letting the limited light of the mausoleum flood her vision.

"That way." She dragged the 'that' on dramatically and finally revealed to herself, yet, another dark, damp, and desolate hallway.

"Well, I hope this is the right way." She said in a sarcastic tone to herself.

_Click_

"AH- Crap!"

She landed on her bottom with an 'umph' in a pile of something soft.

"What the… AIYEE!" She squealed and back away from a pile of deceased bodies. "Nononononono." She shook her head violently, refusing to believe she just fell in a trap. "I DON'T WANNA DIE!" She wailed.

"I don't either… But I guess that sometimes… that's just the way the cookie crumbles…" A tiny, hoarse voice said. "It's just a fact of life. Or, in this case, death."

Sheena turned her head to the source of the corny cliché.

"You! You're that little kid that was with the Chosen!" She looked up and down his beat and bloodied body. "Man, you don't look so great."

"Hey! Who you calling little?" Genis coughed some blood up. "And don't remind me. I know I'm bad enough, no need in reaffirming it."

"Right. Here, let me help you." She crawled over to him and plopped down on her knees. She tore a long piece of purple silk cloth from the hem of her outfit and tied it around a gash on his forehead. "Ah, a bandana would look nicely on you." She nodded in approvingly.

"Heh. Yeah. Too bad I'm going to die before I have the chance to get one." A little more blood and spittle leaked from the corner of his mouth.

"I wouldn't be so sure." Sheena raised an eyebrow as she dug through her kimono pocket for a white headband she always kept with her. "Here." She placed it on his head over the makeshift bandage. "There now. It looks good on you."

"I guess I'll have to take your word for it." Genis tried to smile, but couldn't find the willpower nor the strength. His eyes were closed the whole time. He just didn't see a reason in wasting his energy on sight. It wasn't like you could see anything in this goddess forsaken ruin anyway. "Weren't you trying to kill us?" He questioned her motives.

"Well. It looks like I'm dying too, so I guess there's no use in being enemies now." She chuckled anxiously.

"Yeah. Well. I just hope they break the seal so everyone is safe. Especially Raine."

"Raine?"

"Yeah Raine. She's my sister. She can be a little bossy. Okay. A lot bossy, but it's just because she cares. She doesn't deserve to die. No one does."

"I hear that." Sheena sighed in agreement. Her thoughts roamed to Tethe'alla. If the Chosen of this world should complete her journey, then her village, grandpa, and even that stupid perverted Chosen, Zelos, would die. Actually, she didn't mind if he faded out of existence. She chuckled to herself.

"What's so funny?" Genis croaked.

"Nothing." She stifled her chuckles, then looked to him again. "Actually…"

"Yeah?"

"Since this is the end of the road, I suppose it wouldn't do much harm to tell you about my life."

"We do have plenty of time." Genis agreed.

"Anyway. I live in a village far away from here. We're a community of ninjas, the only one left in the world-" She stopped herself from saying worlds. Him learning about there being two worlds would surely give him a heart attack. He couldn't die now. She needed company.

"There are still ninjas!" Genis coughed after putting all of the strain on his voice. As they subsided, Sheena continued.

"Yep. We're still out there, in all of our glorious seclusion." She sighed. "I still think we should join the modern world. You know, to make allies and stuff. But, the village leader thinks everybody who isn't part of our town is a liable traitor."

"Do you think that?"

"Nah. But, our village has betrayed before, so he does have good reason to think that. He's just trying to protect us. Still, if we don't come back to terms with the world, we'll die off. Our village is like… like… like a limb having its circulation cut off. It's bound to die eventually."

"Interesting comparison. Have you ever thought of becoming a writer?" Genis asked, trying to choke back coughs. It would only bring him pain, and he'd had enough of that.

"A writer?" She asked curiously.

"Yeah. Anyone can be a writer. Even a ninja."

"Me, a writer? Ha! That's funny. I'd like to say I'd try it out sometime, but I don't think there is going to be a sometime. A writer… huh?" She gazed into space for a minute, imagining her book on a bestseller's shelf in one of Tethe'alla's book stores. _Sheena the novelist._ It had a nice ring to it.

"I wouldn't be so sure." Genis pulled her from her reverie. "Get my backpack. There should be some paper and a pencil in it."

"Hehe. I don't think I could write that well. My destiny is to be a warrior, so I don't think it'll turn out that great." She laughed nervously, but took the supplies out of his bag anyway. She grabbed one of his books to bear down on as well. Just out of curiosity, she looked at the title. "_The Basics of Magic._" She read aloud.

"I've read that stupid books so many times I could recite it to you by heart."

"Um… no thank you." Sheena sweat-dropped as she looked at the huge two inch and a half thick tutorial book. "I'll be fine." Looking to change the subject, she asked. "So you're a mage huh? Couldn't you heal yourself? If you're out of mana I've got some orange gels."

"No, no." He told her. "I'm a black mage. My magic wouldn't do us any good."

"Oh." A tone of disappointment could be picked up in Sheena's voice. Her hand stayed itself over the beige paper in her lap as her brain struggled to find words to print. A mental click sounded, and she knew just what to write. It was ingenious. Her back hunched over as her fingers scribbled the pencil across the blank page before her, filling it up with gray writing.

"What are you writing?" Genis asked, thoroughly curious as to what the ninja woman was writing. A sharp pain ripped through the middle of his chest, but he held back his cry of pain. He didn't want to interrupt her creative flow.

"Ah, just a little something to be remembered by." She waved it off as if it were no big deal.

"Read it to me." Genis ordered.

"What?" Sheena blushed. She really didn't want to read her piece to this kid.

"Please." He begged.

Sheena froze in her place, contemplating over reading her paper to him.

For once in about four hours, Genis forced his blood encrusted eyes to open. Some grains of said blood fell into his watery irises, causing them to sting, but he kept pulling them open. He managed to pry them about halfway open, and his eyes allowed him to see the silhouette of the woman's body.

"It'll probably be the last written piece I'll ever read, erm, hear." He concluded.

"Uh… Well then I uh… Here we go." She pulled the page taut in front of her and began to read her chicken scratch writing.

_To whomever is reading this,_

_ If you are reading this, I am dead. A nice boy down here in this hell hole with me, loaned me this piece of paper to write on. Now, just a few things that I wanted cleared up now that I'm no longer amongst the living. One, all of my possession should go to my best friend, Corrine. Second, I leave all of my gear to the village of Mizuho. Third, no matter what that stupid Chos- "_Man."Sheena corrected herself. _says, NO he may NOT have my underwear for his own personal uses. I would very much appreciate it if you conferred these messages for me. I'll make sure to do something for you from the afterlife. _

_Thanks,_

_ Sheena Fujibayashi _

Sheena sat in an awkward silence and…

"Ha ha hah ha haha!! Ha… ha… *cough* *cough*" Genis hacked and laughed in response. "You wrote a _will_? Hah ha… ah…" He calmed himself down.

"Well, what else am I going to write when I'm about to die?" Sheena tried to defend her reasoning, but she knew it was useless to do so. Really, her idea was kind of morbid.

"Anyway, it was still funny. Thank you." Genis could barely nod his head in gratitude.

"You're… thanking me?"

"Yeah."

"For what?"

"For giving me one last chance to laugh before…" He didn't say the word. It was just too hard. He desperately told his mind to stray from thoughts of his life before. It was just easier that way.

"It was pretty funny." Sheena blushed as she laughed. "So…" Her eyes picked at the room or something to do. "Hey!"

"What?!" Genis mocked being excited, making an exaggerated gasp before asking 'what'.

"Psh." Sheena prodded his side gently. "Don't be a brat."

"Sorry, it's just in my genes."

The girl rolled her eyes and continued with her idea. "I bet you I could work some of my limited healing arts on you!"

"Ninjas have healing arts?" He asked, not entirely believing her.

"Limited." She corrected. "But, there's nothing to do but try." She stated.

"True." Genis nodded. "Well then, hit me with your best shot."

* * *

And then there was darkness.

That was all Delia knew as her consciousness was thrust into a pitch black oblivion as void of light as a cypress swamp at midnight.

_Delia. Can you hear me?_

**Yes.**

_Very good. Now listen here. I am your master now._

**Master?**

_Yes master. Whatever you do will be within the margins I set for you. You are now my slave. And, as my first order, I demand that you leave your group as soon as possible._

**Leave?! But, I don't want to-**

_Enough! Did I as what _you_ wanted._

**No.**

_No what?_

**No master.**

_Good little puppet. Now, do be a dear and wake up for me would you. I do enjoy my privacy._

**Your privacy?**

_Yes. I live in your mind. In your realm of subconscious. The only time you can hear me thoroughly is when you sleep. This hearing also includes my thoughts. So, be good little minion and wake up. _

**Yes… Master…**

* * *

Against his better judgment, Kratos,

Jumped in the ditch himself.

It wasn't like he was going to get hurt by a couple of pathetic snakes. The penalty of not using his wings though, would be major wounds to both Aurora and Delia from the agitated snakes. In one smooth motion he scooped Aurora and Delia up, and after bending his legs as far as they would allow, he propelled all of them out of the ditch.

To Aurora, this was all just a blind tumble. Up was down, and down was up. All she sensed was her body being tossed around like a ragdoll, and her stomach not agreeing one bit. When all of the confusion finally stopped, she felt herself positioned between Delia and the floor. In mere seconds after her mind cleared, Delia was lifted off of her and a sharp, unbearable stinging sensation paralyzed her arm. Kratos had taken the liberty of detaching a few clingy snakes that found their teeth's way into their flesh, and then using his strength to deftly rip them in half. Aurora let out a short shriek with every snake removed. After about five snakes, she grabbed Kratos' hand.

"No more. Please." She begged. Tears made wet stains down her cheeks. "It hurts."

"I cannot help it. This has to be done, or you and Delia will be dead within the hour." Kratos continued his work with the woman's hand still upon his wrist. Before she could begin to protest, he jerked another serpent jaw out of her shoulder. Her hand clenched tighter around him as she screamed again. Kratos' face twisted in discomfort at her extremely loud screaming. Angelic hearing could be a pain sometimes. "Aurora, you have to calm down." The angel shook his head.

"I c-can't" She told him, her sporadic gasps interrupting the sentence. Her chest rose and fell a lot more quickly than any normal humanoid's should. Maybe it was just his imagination, so Kratos pushed that thought on the backburner.

With one last yank, the final snake was ripped free of Aurora's flesh, and Kratos could finally feel the ringing in his ears cease.

With that done, thank the goddess, Kratos went over to the unconscious Delia and began to remove the squirmy reptiles from her. Of course, he was a little more delicate this time, since she was a child. He was just grateful she was asleep. His ears were through for the day. But, his relief was short lived as the girl woke up with a start. And boy, he thought Aurora's screams were bad.

Like a raving mad mother bear, Aurora sprang into action and knocked Kratos clear into the wall.

"Get away from her!" She snarled at him. The mercenary blinked, dazed for a second, not quite believing that Aurora just knocked him away like that. The woman then turned to Delia and began to feel for the snakes herself. When she located one, her fingers tried to carefully pry open the jaws of the animal, but only succeeded in having latch off of her self imposed charge and onto her hand. She whimpered in pain, but continued to repeat the same process for another serpent. Yet again, it willfully let go of Delia to clamp its mouth onto Aurora.

Kratos, more annoyed than dazed now, seized Aurora's bleeding hand. His hand closed around the three snakes she had already pried off and pulled them all out along with some of the now writhing woman's flesh. She gasped and whimpered like a mutt left alone, abused in a pound. Kratos shook his head, as if he blamed this all on her stupidity, and began to work on Delia once more. Aurora turned onto her side to face Delia and Kratos. With her good hand, she weakly attempted to push Kratos away, but to him, it only felt like a warm breeze. It seemed like her screams would never stop, but after five minutes of forever, Kratos finished.

Now both Delia and Aurora were whimpering in pain. Kratos rolled his red eyes as he plucked the snakes that were on him. They didn't get their teeth very far into his rock hard muscles though, and it served as no obstacle for the Seraph. He 'pft'ed and helped the other two to their feet. Aurora refused at first, trying to stand by herself. After doing about half a push up her shredded hand sent a shock wave of pain through her arm causing her to collapse. Kratos reached for her, but once again, she waved him off with her well hand.

"Don't tell me I have to carry you again." Kratos muttered to himself.

She twitched, and then went for another go around. This time, she got on her knees and went on the verge of collapse until Kratos caught her under the shoulders. He very easily pulled her up and she swayed a bit. Kratos helped steady her by gripping her waist and holding her body in place. His hands felt like they were put next to a fire after being in a blizzard for an hour. He swallowed and then very cautiously let go, letting his gloved hands linger in the space around her in case she were to fall.

"I'm f-fine." She stuttered. "Where's Delia."

Kratos turned and picked up the once again unconscious girl, and showed her to Aurora. Aurora reached for her, but he took her back.

"Not until I bandage your hand." He stated.

Aurora sighed and shakily held out her mutilated hand. Even Kratos grimaced at her hand. He'd seen bad wounds, but this one went right to the bone. And that wasn't all. _He_ did this to her.

He took an unsure breath and began to work. He took off one of his gloves and tore one end so that it seemed to depict two hands without fingers, and gingerly began to wrap it around the woman's trembling hand. She winced and her mouth parted slightly and quickly, letting a small cry escape. He tried to hurry and end her pain, but it only made the process hurt her worse. Her lips trembled, trying to contain the energy that would otherwise be used for crying. Kratos finished and quickly tied the two thumbs together to keep his makeshift bandage stay in place.

"Thank you." Aurora said.

Kratos head snapped up and looked at her in disbelief. "You're… thanking me?" It was the only time Kratos ever had double took on something.

She swallowed nervously. "Y-Yeah." She sat there with her lips pursed letting seconds tick by. "And- I-…" She paused.

Kratos raised an eyebrow to prompt her to go on, even though she couldn't see the gesture.

"I…" Her head then shook violently from side to side. "Never mind. It was nothing."

This spiked Kratos' interest, but he didn't push any further, expecting that whatever she needed to say was trivial to the task at hand.

"If that's all, then we must go on and search for the others.

"Right." She nodded in agreement. "Could you give me Delia?" She asked.

Kratos turned from her and picked up the child which he gently placed in Aurora's outstretched arms.

"Thank you." Aurora expressed her undying gratitude. "For saving Delia." She clarified after receiving a silence as a response.

"You're… welcome." Kratos said after a pause, and the way it was emphasized on the end made it sound more like a question than an answer.

Just what had changed in her to make her more agreeable? He couldn't say. Maybe it was because he saved Delia. The girl _was _immensely precious to the woman.

* * *

"Raine! Help!" Colette cried as she was cornered by a giant, electric blue bird. Otherwise known as the guardian of the seal. Lloyd was doubled over, panting in the corner after taking a sharp blow to his stomach from the bird's razor-like claws. Even the Professor herself was worn out from casting healing spells left and right. Dark circles had formed bags under her glassy eyes as she judged how to use the last of her remaining magic. All of the items they had brought were spent, so using an item was out of the option. She sighed and hoped for the best as she used her remaining strength to cast one last nurse.

"N-Nurse!" She called weakly, and glowing blue spirits in the forms of people danced around the group and replenished a small amount of their strength.

Colette tried to shout an appreciation, but the flying beast caught her off guard and knocked her off the side of the pyramid shaped ruin. Her squeals could be heard as sparkly pink wings thrust out of her back.

Lloyd straightened his spine and with a grunt of desperation, ran back into the fray. Even an idiot such as Lloyd could realize that this may very well be the end of their journey.

But then he realized what would happen if they did fail at this seal.

His dad, Noishe, Genis, the Professor, Aurora, Delia… Colette… They would all…

"No!" He screamed in defiance. "This ends here." And with a weak war cry, Lloyd ended the bird's existence with a plunge of his sword through its chest. With an unearthly shriek, the bird began to spasm uncontrollably, and started to thrash about, crashing to the floor. In one swoop of its wing, though, it swiped the whole left side of the roof clear off the face of the mausoleum. Rocks, pillars, and all.

Even Raine.

She didn't have enough time to scream as her back hit something rock hard, knocking her clear out.

"Professor!" Lloyd shouted. Tears sprang to his eyes. "Professor!" He rushed to the edge to peer down the side, and much to his relief, he saw Colette carrying Raine, safe and secure in her arms. Colette then flew, almost floated to the ground.

"Thank goodness the Professor's alright." She sighed. "I don't know what I'd do without her." Real, genuine, relief could be seen in the young angel's eyes. And that made Lloyd happy. As long as she was happy, he was, and at that moment, it served them both well.

A high pitched ringing started to sound which caused the swordsman to turn around. In the middle of the floor was a giant, glowing, green ring about the size of a house.

"What's that?" Lloyd asked in curiosity more than in fear.

"I don't know." Colette said, even though it was kind of obvious.

* * *

Aurora cradled Delia against her chest as she walked down the hallway with Kratos. They'd spent most of the time in silence after Aurora thanked Kratos. Inside his mind, the Seraph was still trying to figure that one out.

_It was probably just because you saved Delia. That's all. There is no need in getting worked up about her. It was a simple "Thank you." Those kinds of things happen all of the time. She's owed you one many times already, so there's no surprise she did it then, when it was just the two of you. Why do it in front of the others? To them, that was uncharacteristic of her. It's uncharacteristic to you. No, no… maybe not _that_ uncharacteristic. Maybe she lik- no. No, she shows complete resentment of your existence entirely. It's best just to ignore her. Maybe she'll leave you alone. Or, maybe she'll push harder. Then again, that might not be so bad. It would then be easy enough to manipulate her, maybe into a seemingly accidental death. Set up a trap and take a walk with her through some woods. No, a mercenary would be too well trained to miss a trap. Maybe blame it on a pack of wild animals that "attacked" you. No, a pack of animals doesn't stand too much of a chance against trained warriors. Hm… Ah! Blame it on Ryudo. No… no… that man doesn't deserve to be mentioned in the same sentence as Aurora. _

Nothing short of a fire brewed in the pit of his stomach.

"Are you okay?" Aurora asked.

"Am I what?" Kratos accidentally snapped at her.

She drew back, almost frightened of him for a second, but more frightened for Delia than herself. She was no fool, she knew the man was very skilled at his job, and he didn't want Delia to be around anyone upset and with a sword. Her upper body twisted more, just getting the balled up little away from the seething angel.

" I-I- You just seemed a little tense." Her voice cracked. "I'm sorry if I bothered you."

"No. No." He assured her. "I was just thinking about some… things… that's all. It wasn't your fault. I'm sorry for that outburst." He apologized.

"It's alright." She warily turned her body to face the front again.

Then Delia seemed to wake up, screaming at the top of her lungs, and grabbing at Aurora in search of safety.

"Aurora! Make him go away. Make him go away! Please! It hurts! Make him stop!" The child thrashed about in the woman's arms, and mistakenly kicked her bad hand. She instinctively jerked her hand away from the source of the pain and tried to shelter it, but only knocked it against Delia once again, and this time she screamed herself. Of course, Delia was too heavy for just one arm, and she started to slip and fall to the hard, unforgiving, stone floor.

Kratos quickly snatched her from the floor's grasp with one arm, and caught Aurora's unstable body in the other. So now, Delia was secure under his armpit as if she were a package, and his other hand braced Aurora's back so she didn't fall either. Involuntarily, he pulled her close to his body, and her heat was almost irresistible.

And before anything else could ensue, they were all enveloped by a warm green light.

* * *

In a giant poof of sparkles and dust, everyone who was in/trapped inside the temple, magically reappeared with their other companions. Genis was sprawled on the floor in all of his gangly and bloodiness, and Sheena to his right with a crumpled piece of paper in her hand. Kratos was now sitting down with Aurora laying belly up on his lap and Delia to his left, who which, was still screaming like a maniac, and maybe she was one. Aurora came to her senses and quickly sat up. Having all of the heat near his crotch suddenly disappear made Kratos shudder.

But, the first thing that registered in everyone else's mind was a shrill cry of "Genis!"

The professor rushed to her brother's side and began casting numerous spells, some of which didn't even pertain to curing physical damage, only status ailments. Despite her bout of mana deprivation a moment ago, she seemed to be going strong now. Genis looked in much better health after five minutes.

Lloyd and Colette had went to meet Kratos and they all went to interrogate the ninja assassin that was near the siblings.

"Why were you with Genis? Did- Did you do this?!" Lloyd suddenly became hostile to the heavily endowed woman.

"No! Of course not!" She frantically waved her hands in front of her body in a "No way!" gesture.

"I swear if you did this-"

"Lloyd, calm down." Kratos put a restraining hand on the boy's shoulder. "Rushing into things could get everyone into trouble. There's no need in jumping to conclusions too early." The mercenary said, and much to Lloyd's dismay, he was right.

"You're always right." Lloyd mumbled.

"Of course I am." Kratos smirked.

'Of course I am' Lloyd mouthed silently as he mocked the red head by making funny faces. Kratos just rolled his eyes and released Lloyd's shoulder.

"I'm glad to see how mature you have become on this journey."

"Hey!" Raine interrupted "While you two were arguing, Colette is over there having a nice chat with her _assassin_!" The teacher's cheeks were flushed in anger that put fear into even Kratos' heart. They both quickly rushed to the two chatting girls.

"Oh. Hi Lloyd!" Colette smiled. "This is Sheena."

"That's your assassin!" The swordsman looked shocked.

"She's not so bad when you get to know her." The oblivious blonde cocked her head to the side in a cute, puppy-dog fashion.

"Well, if Colette says you aren't that bad…"

"Still be on your guard." Kratos advised him.

"I don't need you to advise me!" Lloyd frowned at his better.

"I'm afraid you still need guidance." He stated.

"You're statements mean nothing!"

"Yes they do. You clearly need guidance. You rush into things too often, and then when you think everything is fine after two minutes of evaluation, you completely let your guard down. A shameful way for a swordsman to act." Kratos lectured.

"I don't need to be lectured!"

Genis raised his head. "Lloyd, you don't even know what a lecture is, where did that come from?"

"From the words in the sky there." Lloyd pointed a finger to the sky, where, indeed, black letters were written on pages of clouds.

"CUT!"

*Crowd cheers as the revered DragonLady24 steps out of one of the clouds.*

"Lloyd…" I sighed, then pause to smile for one of those sneaky paparazzi camera's. "How many times do I have to tell you _not_ to refer to the narration?"

"Uh…"

"That's what I thought. Now keep your eyes in front of you, and not in the sky. You have a person to protect. Looking up here just distracts you."

"NO! Not from you too."

"Yes, from me. I'm the creator of this story, I can do whatever I want. So, hop to it. This chapter's about wrapped up."

*Goes back into the sky and the crowd dies down.*

'Hop to it' Lloyd mocked.

*Pops giant head back out of cloud.*

"ARE YOU MOCKING ME?!?!?"

"…Meep…"

"That's what I thought."

*Returns to the wonderful land of author-dom.*

"Uh… okay…" Sheena sat there wide eyed. "Does… that happen often?"

"Only to us." Genis said sarcastically as he sat up.

"Hey…" Colette interjected. "Where's Delia and Aurora."

Off to the side, Aurora was bent over a spastic Delia.

"Delia honey, tell me what's wrong." Aurora had her hands on the child's shoulders. Tears were streaming down both faces like running faucets. Delia was trying to communicate something, but it was lost in her constant gurgle of crying fits. The rest of the group rushed to their sides. "Delia, Delia please! What's wrong? You have to stop crying like this."

"_You've_ got to stop crying like this." Genis remarked.

"What's wrong with her?" Sheena furrowed her brows, genuinely concerned for the child's health.

"I-I don't know. S-s-she goes to sleep, a-and then wakes up. And every time she w-wakes up, she c-cries. Someone please. Help her p-please." Aurora stuttered through her cries.

"Move." Raine pushed everyone aside except Aurora. She tried, but the woman obstinately refused to leave Delia's side. Colette sat beside the woman and tried to soothe her while Raine came up with a diagnosis.

"M-make… go…voices…AH!" Delia was in a bad fit of delusion. Raine's heart sunk as she came to the realization that Delia may have schizophrenia. The only thing she could do for the time being was sedate her. She took a few herbs out of her side pack and crushed them as best as she could with her hands, and let the chunky powder pour into the girl's screaming mouth. Gravely, she turned to her companions.

"W-What's wrong?" Aurora asked, almost afraid of the answer.

"I-…" Raine paused, almost willing to lie to the group about Delia's illness, but then thought better of it. "I think, now remember I said _think"_ She paused, letting that sink in for a moment. "That Delia has a severe case of… sc- schizophrenia." She stuttered.

"_What?!_" Aurora shrieked, causing poor Colette pain. "Schizophrenia! B-But she was fine, she was… before…"

"It may have been the stress put on her inside the temple." Genis spoke up. "I-I was in pretty bad shape after we managed to fight off some bird thingies inside the mausoleum. Anyway, she seemed determined to find you guys so that you could save me. I mean, that's a lot of pressure for an adult, much less a kid. And they do say that these kinds of diseases can lay dormant for long periods of time and appear when extreme stress or grief is added to the afflicted person."

"Woah. Kid's gotta brain." Sheena commented.

"Thank you…" Genis said, disheartened. _This… this is all my fault. There's only one cure for schizophrenia._

"Is there a way to cure it? There must be! Please, please save Delia. She's… she's like my own child." Aurora begged at Raine's knees.

"Th-there's only one way to ease Delia's suffering." Raine's voice sounded more like a squeak.

"What? Anything!" Aurora was on her stomach, crying, pleading, and begging.

"To… to just, put her out of her misery."

"You… you don't mean?!" Aurora's voice was breathy.

"I- I'm sorry, but it's what's best for her." And with that, Raine took a tiny vial of poison from her hip pack.

* * *

Me: Don't fret dear readers. There _is _rhyme and reason to Delia's ailment. Not just that I want to torture her, not that I want to in the first place. But, let's lookie here…

Things accomplished:

1. Get a little more of Colette in the story because I think I've been ignoring her.

2. Focus on other characters and the relationships between them as well as keeping Kratos and Aurora in a major part of the story.

3. Let Genis LIVE!!!!!

4. Leave things all suspenseful-like. OooooOOOOOoooOoooooOo…

Things **UN**-… accomplished:

1. Incorporate a little more of Delia's new _Master._ (I think that will be fixed in the next chapter.)

2. More description. All the chapters could use better description.

Things I found funny while writing:

1. The thought of Colette cheating and Lloyd's reaction.

2. When writing all of Kratos' thoughts, you know, those long paragraphs in italics? Well, for some reason, I always put a British accent in there. And for some reason, it just won't go away. Oh! Wait! I know where it came from. Ah… Yes! That moody judge from American Idol. Simon Cowell! That's what it reminded me of. Lol, go back to those and insert Kratos' face and Simon's voice. LOL! At least to me it is.

Okay, this was a very long, and very painful chapter to write, both physically and mentally, so _please pleasepleaseplease PLEASE! _Review. I will be forever grateful. I worked as hard as I could to make this one review worthy, so please. And please go to the forum too! Maybe, you might persuade me to work on this some more instead of my new story A Past Stained Scarlet which is a Resident Evil fic. But, **only** if you show me that you _want_more of this story. Well, it's three o'clock in the morning, I guess I'd better get to sleep, even though I'm, not that tired. Lol. Anyway, Good night to you all, and I hope that this year of 2010 will bring much joy to you and I. Happy belated New Year!


	29. Chapter 28

Me: Well, I just can't stay away from this story for my own good.

Genis: Stop neglecting your other stories you just posted!

Me: I can't help it! *Sigh* I guess I'll work on my two new fics after this. Probably my self-insert first, but, I _need_ to work on A Past Stained Scarlet. Maybe later…

* * *

Raine squeezed her eyes shut and gripped to vial of deadly liquid between her thumb and forefinger, trying to clear her mind of what she was about to do. She, a _teacher_, who was supposed to be a mentor and protector of children, was about to commit a murder of one. Ironic, no?

Just as expected, Aurora didn't agree with this "cure". Not one bit. Kratos had to pin her arms in an X shape over her chest and wrap his arms around them, like a straight jacket. The panic stricken woman did all she could to break free from her cage of flesh, but it was futile, and all she managed to do was cause herself major fatigue. Her knees scraped along the rigid stone floor beneath her causing bruises and cuts of which she did not take even the slightest bit of notice to. She was too preoccupied with escaping Kratos' vice grip to deal with minor cuts.

"Let me go!" She tried kicking him, but missed when the seraph spread his legs.

"Aurora calm down." Kratos tried to get her to calm down, but it seemed impossible to do so.

"Calm down?! I can't calm down! She's going to kill Delia! Let go! Let go!" She screamed, then cried. She cried long, wailing moans that sounded like those of a dying wolf. Giving up on kicking her way out, she bent her head over and began to _bite_ Kratos. The man's face turned into an expression of bewilderment. She was biting harder than he could've expected from a half-elf, not that it hurt him though. But it was able to slice through his skin and cause him to bleed. He grunted in irritation, but that only provoked her more. She went forward as far as she could, and then backed herself up into his chest trying to loosen his arms for just a second so that she could break free. Kratos was unmoved, however, but he could feel his emotion spike. He could get use to restraining her if she was going to ram her body into him all of the time. Before his mind could go any further, he distracted himself by ordering her to stop her struggles at once.

"This is for her own benefit. Stop this right now. Listen to me!" Kratos barked in her ear.

The features of Aurora's face spread out from its scrunched expression of aggression, to one of recognition. It was not Kratos' voice that resonated in her mind, but Ryudo. Sick memories of her life before flooded her head.

* * *

_Ryudo snatched Aurora back by her hair, thwarting her attempts to escape the hell he had created for her. "Stop this right now. Listen to me! Bitch!" He backhanded her face, leaving a red imprint of a hand on her face. She cried out. _

"_Stop! Stop please!"_

"_Stop, stop please!" Ryudo mocked. He smirked and threw her to the ground, roughly flipping her over on her back, and straddled her between the legs. His hands made quick work of her shirt, almost ripping the fabric as he jerked it over her head. _

"_I-I thought you loved me!" Aurora sobbed._

"_Yeah." He bent over and pressed his lips against one of her now naked breasts. "I love your body, and the money it brings me." He growled ferally. _

_Aurora cried, and could only think of the way her own petty infatuation had brought this upon herself._

* * *

Time seemed to freeze for the swordswoman. All seemed lost to her now. She went limp in Kratos' arms which scared the man at first, thinking she'd passed out from lack of air. His shock was short lived though as she began to sob. She made tiny, hiccupping movements as she cried in his arms. Her salty tears stung his open wound from her bite and a mixture of blood and tears ran down his hands onto her lap. Kratos apprehensively let up on his arms to give her more breathing room since she apparently was going to need it. She slumped over more and began to cry louder, her sobs sounding more like strained breathing.

Raine took one look at the pitiful adoptive mother, and knew immediately what intense pain she was going through. If anything like this had happened to Genis… She shuddered at the thought. She was now extremely grateful that he got out better off than the poor, mentally ill girl lying on the ground before her. Amongst the chaos,Delia's face actually looked… peaceful.

After taking a deep, preparation breath, Raine's thumb shook with reluctance and popped the cork off the top of the vial. The stench of potent poison pilfered the air and caused the younger members of the group to cover their noses in disgust.

Colette was crying against Lloyd's shoulder, relentlessly asking "Why?" and "She's only seven." The other teen's own lip quivered at both the situation and the weeping girl his right.

The teacher gasped back a cry and let the vial lay on the tip of Delia's pale blue lips. Her hand shook as she began to tip the other side over so the liquid would drain into her mouth.

"Stop!" Sheena flung her arms out beside her in a cross formation so that her palms faced away from her body, effectingly halting any further action. Raine flinchingly jumped causing the slim glass vial to fly out of her hand and land with a delicate _ching_ling but deafening crash to the cold hard stone. The slick fluid seeped out and over the chips of thin glass and hissed as it soaked into the rock.

Raine's mouth was agape and short, spastic squeaks emitted from the back of her thoat as her eyes darted from Delia's sleeping face, to the escaping venom, and then to the raven haired girl that caused all of the chaos within the past second. One icy eyebrow twitched in irritation.

"Do you know how _rare _and _expensive_ that poison was?!?!" She scolded the ninja who drew back in sudden fear. Her wood brown eyes staring into Raine's like they were headlights. For Sheena, that was probably just as bad as looking into oncoming headlights. Raine continued with her castigation. "I wasn't even able to pay with it for _gald_." The scientist expressed its value by exaggerating the word gald as if the currency was all people lusted over. Sheena stood there baffled and bumbling an apology. Raine's patience withered. "WHY DID YOU INTERUPT ME?!?"

"I know a way to save Delia!" Sheena blurted out, and just as quickly placed a hand over her mouth.

Aurora turned to her with lighting speed. "What?!" The woman's face sported such a hungry expression that it disturbed the children right to their core. Even without eyes to express her need for another cure, it was clearly conveyed through her highly placed eyebrows, the slight gape of her mouth, and the downward curve of her nose. Her hands escaped through Kratos' grip, of which was loosened by his astonishment of the shinobi's idea, and spread out in fron of her about a foot to either side. Her legs and hips were still attatched to the mercenary's lap. Like a newborn baby, she crawled out of saftey, in this case Kratos, and towards the object of desire. At Sheena's feet, her hands trembled as they steadied themselves on her shoes. "P-please." Her voice was transparent. "Please help Delia, please. I need her. My life means nothing without her."

Kratos felt a pang of jealousy rip through his chest. Oh, what it would be like to be Delia, he thought. To be the object of Aurora's desires, needs, and pleasures. Part of his heart longed to be in that posistion and the other accused him of treason. A mental image of himself pulling Anna's heary from her still breathing body and crushing it underneath his boots, spattering her blood everywhere, on the ground, and on his boots, flashed in his mind. His throat bulged with saliva as he swallowed nervously. From somewhere in the void, he could feel his dead heart's envious and unforgiving eyes staring him down into his own imagniary mental corner. He tried to get up and run to her, but a chain was holding him down, a sort of passion, a heat.

"Uh…" Sheena's voice was granted everyone's attention, and therefore their eyes. She blinked, frozen in fear of making a wrong move. "I-I think that… that my village has a cure for this disease." She genlty spoke this information like she was talking to a pack of rabid, feral wolves that hadn't eaten for days. One wrong move and she was chow chow.

"Really?" Aurora asked in disbelief, but desparity got the better of her. "I don't care right now if you're telling me the truth, but please, get the cure for me, for Delia. Don't let her die. She's all that's left for me. Even now I can feel a part of me dying with her. It's slipping away and I'm afraid that-… I'm afraid." She admitted. Her lips started to tremor again as she slumped from Sheena's leg to the floor.

Genis broke from Lloyd and Colette to speak with the woman who went red from having Aurora grovel at her feet.

"Sheena," He began.

"Yeah?" Sheena answeredwithout looking at him, only the deflated woman. Was she really counting on her _that much_? It was a little more pressure than the ninja preferred.

"Are you sure that you can bring back an antidote for Delia?" He asked, giving her the stern eye. Sheena slowly turned to him. Her eyes fled from his absurdly mature gaze to the point of her nose. With a solemn nod, she announced.

"All I can do is try." She concluded.

Genis nodded back. "That's all we ask."

She looked up to him with tears in her eyes. "I don't know if I can deal with this much pressure." Her voice quivered.

Genis placed a reassuring hand on her shoulder. "Yes you can. If you can spend hours trapped with me in a dank and smelly ruin, you can make a simple delivery trip. I know you can. If you don't, then it's for ceartain that we could lose two of our group members."

Sheena sighed, then shook her head agreeingly. "I'll do it, but it might take a day or two. In the meantime, you guys should take Delia somewhere safe, like Luin or Asgard." She suggested. "Besides, it'll be easier to find you guys there."

"Okay then." The mage shook her hand, and with that settled, she darted back down into the dungeon and not long after her sihouette could be seen dashing across the fields below. "Good luck." Genis whispered. He authoratively turned to the group.

Raine was leaned over Delia's body constantly monitoring her vital signs, but her cheeks were still a tomato red from the fury left over about the poison incedent. Aurora was sitting up and wiping her sniffling nose with the back of her arm, shaking at the events that just occurred. Kratos seemed deep in thought about something, of course, with that guy you could never tell. But, he seemed pretty perturbed about it, whatever _it _was. And, Lloyd was guiding Colette back to the stairs to wait for the others. The two of them were in an important conversation by the looks of it.

Genis gulped in some air, and then let it go through his nose. It was a calming process he learned from his older sister. After a few more repeats, he addressed the group on their current situation, but his resolved front was unsupported by the next few words that he stumbled to get past his lips.

"H-Hey guys."

The saddened stares of eight eyes and a blue bandana met his gaze, all expecting some words of guidance and comfort. He had never believed that his sister would look at him in such a way. In fact, he never really imangined himself as a go between for the group to a ninja.

"Sh-Sheena, the woman I was talking to, she left for her village to obtain an antidote for Delia. You may noy be sure about her intentions, b-but, I think that she is trustworthy enough to do this favor for us." He paused his little speech in discomfort as he felt the heat in his face rise considerably from the hot stares of his companions. "So, I-I think we should do as she says, and rendevous with Sheena at A-Asgard." He didn't know why he picked Asgard; it was just the first thing that came out. Then of course, vowels always came naturally when one sutters. "B-but we should rest at Luin because she'll be back in two days." Genis quickly added on.

"Alright then." Raine stood and brushed the dust off of her bright orange overcoat. A brightly optimistic color easily spotted in the midst of a stressful and depressing time. That's how her little brother saw it. In fact, the coat had saved his life once. During the time the siblings wandered in the wilds of Iselia, he'd accidentally fallen into a pond. Since he grew up with a sister who was deathly afraid of any body of water from the trickle of humble creek to the roaring waves of the majestic oceans, the ability to swim had escaped him. Frightened, Raine was at a loss of what to do. But, as usual, her ingenuity saved the day when she took off the sunset orange coat and used it as a rope to pull her baby brother back to her. It happened to be in the middle of winter and he ended up looking like a pitiful frozen catcicle by the end of the hour. They laughed about it in the end, but Genis could honestly say that was one of the scariest moments of his life.

The group eventually packed up and left, and the mystery to Sheena's quick escape was resolved. The clearing of the seal automatically disarmed all trapes and a heavely glow visualized a path of ancient hieroglyphics. Of course, it took the whole group to drag Raine out of the mausoleum due to her obbsessive babbling over the runes. Lloyd's head was throbbing with unretained and useless information by the time they left. Now outside, they found their path and set out for it.

"Whew. I'm so glad to finally get out of there. It feels like forever since we've been outside." Lloyd breathed relivedly. "Don't you're knees and backs feel stiff Professor, Kratos?"

Raine raised an eyebrow in interest. "Now why would our knees and backs be stiff Lloyd?" She asked curiously.

"Well, it was relly cold in there and don't old people's knees and backs hurt in the cold? All this walking must hurt." Raine would've taken it as a joke if it weren't for the genuine confusion in his voice. Her face got hot and turned a bright scarlet. Kratos didn't look back at his rude mannered son, but his top lip drew up into a snarl. Genis immediately let out a short burst of laughter, his head jerking outwards with the force of it, but he just as quickly covered his mouth, stifiling his laughter just barely down to a snicker. His shoulders shook with amusement. This earned him a well deserved smack to the back of his overly sized head.

"Lloyd, the Professor's only twenty three." Collete gave one of her signature embarrased smiles and cutely scratched her head.

"I thought that was old. I thought you were old after you passed your teen years." Lloyd said innocenlty.

"Well, it's not." Raine said trying to salvage some form of dignity in doing so. "Thirty years is old." She corrected him.

"Oh… Well, how old are you Kratos?" The swordsman asked.

The mercenary ignored him and continued walking.

"Hey Kratos." Lloyd tried to get his attention.

"What?" Kratos asked, gritting his teeth.

"How old are you?"

"… Twenty-eight… Lloyd…" He begrudgingly answered his son.

"Aw, that's close enough right? Only a year's difference." He shrugged his shoulders.

Kratos twitched irritably at his son's stupidity and his perception of age.

Genis was still laughing and corrected his friend. "T-That's two years L-Loyd! Hahaha!"

"Shut it you little twerp." Lloyd pulled the hald-elf's bangs over his eyes.

"H-hey!" Genis flapped his arms in front of himself to ward of the teen and then indignantly fixed his hair with a calm face and pursed lips. But his composure didn't last long. His façade crumbled when he thought of his sister's age again.

"Okay children, let's keep moving." Raine growled as the kids followed behind her like laughing little baby ducks.

Aurora, who would normally laugh at the normality of the antics, kept up a blank stare. Or, well, what you could consider a blind person's version of a stare. Kratos narrowed his red eyes on her profile, noticing the stress in her brows and the upturned curve of her lip. Then, his eyes trailed down to Delia, her round bobbed hair adorned with a golden vine hairband. Wait… a golden vine hair band? He'd seen that before. Martel had found one just like it on one of his adventures in the old days. In fact, it was in the same area as well. It couldn't be… No…

"No." He whispered and snatched the band from the child's hair, ruffling it. Aurora's face whipped around to the side.

"What are you doing?" She asked monotonesly.

Delia flinched in pain, and Aurora turned her attention to her.

"Delia?" The strain of panic tinged her voice, but at least she didn't sound like a robot this time.

The group focused on the trio, but mostly on Delia. Colette rushed over and bent over the girl. Raine was right behind her with another dose of sedative, a heavy one which should tide the child over until night. This time the medicine had a sickly purple color, like the revolting grape flavored cough medicine we have here. On impulse, Delia tried to spit it back up like a baby, but Raine used her finger to push it back in and held her top and bottomm jaws together, forcing to swallow. The effect was immediate and the black haired girl calmed instantly. The Professor sighed and packed the glass case and measuring spoon.

Kratos tried to avoid any attention and hid the accesory he stole from Delia's head by discreetly placing it in his already stuffed bag. Aurora didn't let him off the hook so easily though.

"What did you do?" She asked the angel, but it wasn't in an angry way, but a panicked one.

Fortunately for him, he was a smooth liar. "I thougt there was something on her head, a bug perhaps, but it seems it was only a figment of my imagination. There is nothing to worry over. I believe I just disturbed her sleep. That is all." He 'explained'.

Aurora let out a worried breath, but didn't go any further. She was happy not knowing the truth she sensed he was hiding.

"Hey…" Collete drew everyone's attention. "Is that smoke?" Her hand was stretched in the direction of Luin where, indeed, a thick, black, plume of smoke rose a decent way into the afternoon sky, making a harsh, scar-like mark against the soft orange-yellow background.

"Is Luin… on fire?" Lloyd asked to no one in particular.

"Hurry!" Genis darted past them all like a bullet in the direction of the burning town. "We gotta check this out! The Desians might be the problem!"

One word about Desians and Lloyd was all over Genis's trail, therefore, Collete as well.

"Wait! Children! Don't go by yourselves! It's too dangerous!" Raine called, beckoning for them to come back, but it was useless. Her maternal instincs caused her to involuntarily follow. Kratos had to drag Aurora behind him since she was in a state of confusion. Life with no sight must've been hard. No telling what kind of things she ran into all the time. Kratos shuddered. He knew.

* * *

Sheena ran to a patch of woods in which she hid her flowery purple rhieard and deftly swung her legs over the top. With a twist of the wrist, it roared to life and sprang into the air. She could see the darkening sky as the trees cleared from her vision, like a curtain dropped to the floor. She leaned to the left and the airborne vehicle swerved to the respective direction and sped off to the Asgard Ranch. Sheena knew there would be enough mana to supply her warp between the worlds.

The plains of grassy flields sped by and in no time she was hovering above the human ranch. Her fingers ran over some buttons searching for the one that would transport her to Tehte'alla. "C'mon." She frowned as her mind scrambled to remember the posistion of the buttons. "What a crappy time to forget your basic rhieard controls Sheena. Way to go. Oh, shut up. You're talking to yourself. Bad Sheena. Oh wait, no talking. Right." She resisted the urge to slap her face and blushed at embarrassing herself in front of… herself.

Suddenly, there was a hole the size of a quarter in her engine. She gasped and turned to see what caused the damage, which was an unwise. Her rhieard capsized in response and she was flung off her rhieard. She landed on her voluptuous butt with thud right smack dab in the middle of a Desian patrol squad. She rubbed her sore back and looked up only to be met with a group of steely eyes glaring down at her. She chuckled nervously. "Heh heh… Aaaaaaah… crap."

* * *

When they arrived, Luin was a landfill basically. An odious landfill at that. The stench hit them like a wave, forcing them to pinch their noses between the thumb and forefinger. Unfortunately for Aurora, Delia was cradled in her arms, so deflecting the smell was literally out of her reach.

An eerie cloud of death seemed to surround the area. Whispers of the dead echoed in their ears, and told a tale a bloody death. Scraps of once quaint little houses were scattered about, weaponry and supplies were strewn across the ground, and the detatched limbs of people could be seen peeping out of the piles of wood and ash. Colette squeaked and hid her face against Lloyd's chest. He himself was horrified, and his mouth hung open which made a lovely hang out for the flies.

Genis felt the pit of his stomach curl up into a knot. Half-elves. His people did this. They expunged an entire city, and what did they accomplish? They accomplished exactly what they wanted to accomplish. They managed to decimate another part of the human population. It sickened him to think of how he could've turned out, where he could've been born, and how he would've been raised. Did the Desian's really think this was a justified punishment? The mage shook his head. He couldn't prove that the Desians did this, but he knew. There was no other force strong enough to do something like this in the world.

"Oh no." Raine moaned. The destruction of the city disturbed her very core. Her throat tightened in mournfully. All of these people. They were just simple fishermen, they'd never hurt anyone. Out of all the places she'd traveled, this was one of the most serene and welcoming. Whoever had done this, must've had a black hole for a heart, she thought.

Kratos could smell death. It was just something you picked up after four-thousand years of fighting. He could feel the bile in his stomach revolting, threatening to come out the top. He took a deep breath and choked it back. Everytime he was in this place, all he could think of was Anna. Were her parents a part of their slaughter. Did the Desians take their lives, just like they took the life of the couple's daughter and his dearly beloved wife Anna? Uncaringly and cold heartedly? Anger grew in his chest like a parasite. It was growing at a relentless rate and was ready to burst out of his chest at any time. He closed his eyes and tried to block out all thoughts, and create a blank page in his mind. He managed to hold the image for several seconds before the silky chestnut hair of his wife filled the white void, and then that was replaced by blood.

His eyes flickered open to rid himself of the awful vision, but he couldn't get rid of that lingering feeling of anger.

Aurora, unable to see the carnage, sat down,

On an arm.

She shrieked and lauched herself a foot in the air. Her whole body shook with disgust. Her breathing was increased tenfold as she fled from the disembodied limb. "I don't like it here." She whispered to the group. "I want to leave, now." Her tone held an uncharacteristic trace of frenzy. Kratos nodded, and as the ringleader, all of the rest followed in his stead. Quietly, they tiptoed through the village turned graveyard. There was just a nagging feeling that they should respect the desceased lying all around them.

The group set up camp a small ways outside the camp, just far enough to avoid the air of death. It was really too quiet and Lloyd fell asleep in an hour. That was early, even for him. And, without a partner to chat with, Colette strayed off to away from Luin.

Raine held her brother close, both her and her sibling's heads hung low. She sighed defeatedly and rested her cheek on Genis' spiky haired head. The strands sticking straight up were a bit uncomfortable, but she was too emotionally drained to care or notice.

"Raine." Genis breathed.

"Yes Genis." She petted his hair with her slender finger, a comforting affection to the tiny mage. He snuggled in closer to her chest. She held him tighter. He sighed.

"D-Do you think that… if we were born into a Desian family, that… we… we would this." Genis felt tears come to his crystal blue eyes. One trickled down his pale face and evaporated from his chin.

"Genis." Raine was hurt. "Do you really think I would've let us become monsters?"

"No, but, what if we were raised that way?"

The woman paused. "… I don't know." She stroked his arm. "I'm just grateful we're not."

"Yeah." Genis slumped into his sister's arms. "Me too." And they both slipped into the dark bliss of sleep.

Aurora gently placed Delia beside her and sat crosslegged away from the fire. She could feel her lids getting heavy. She shivered from the silence, for she was truly blind when all was quiet. And in the middle of it all, she couldn't get rid of the longing feeling in her stomach. She blamed it on the lack of food that day, but she knew what it really was. Her mind tried to refuse it, but her body longed to held and comforted by Kratos.

No.

She fitfully turned to her other side.

There was no more trusting her heart. If it decieved her before, it will decieve her again.

Kratos licked his lips, not patiently waiting for the night to drop its velvet curtain, but he was managing the best he could. He took spaced and even breaths to calm himself, and for reasons beyond him, it always worked. Finally, out of the corner of his eye, he could see Delia stand, but her eyes were different. They were… gray.

Just like Martel's were.

His face narrowed to a scowl as he rose from his spot and began the hunt. The only way to find _him_ was to follow Delia without being noticed which meant being both unheard and unseen. He quietly stepped over Aurora who was sound asleep, or so he thought. He felt a warm finger tap his shoulder and when he turned around, the once sleeping woman assaulted his lips.

They both felt an intimate sensation tingle up and down their spines. Aurora's calmmy hands shakily placed themselvs on either side of Kratos' face. The man felt like he had a fever for the first time in ages, but he didn't know how to respond to her actions. He could feel Aurora's lips moving softly, trying to coax something out of him, but he sat there dumbly and wide-eyed. Wet spots formed on his cheeks where her face and his touched. It finally hit him that she was crying, but why? Was she upset at his lack of response? By now her body was shaking violently against his. He came back to his senses and gently began to move his lips with hers, like an intricate dance. Aurora let out a small cry of surprise from the back of her throat which only made Kratos more eager. He released his tonge and let it slide over the line between her lips. It was not only hot, but it actually tasted _sweet_. She could feel a heat growing between her now damp thighs. He gasped at the taste, but contiued to rub her lips with his tongue at a faster rate. She shook even more like a tremor was racking her body, and reluctantly she parted her lips and breathed into Kratos' mouth. For him it was like walking into a bakery and having all of the pasteries scents assault your nose and mouth. His numbed hands rose from his sides to hold her back, but she slid her hands down to his chest and pushed herself away from him.

"I-I'm sorry." She was breathing heavily, panting almost. Little whines accompanied each breath.

Kratos was too speechless to rebel against the ending of the kiss, or even begin another one. His mouth just stood wide open, deprived of Aurora's lips.

The woman shook her head. "I shouldn't have- I'm sorry, I just. Please go back to bed. Forget it." She trembled and layed back down on the ground, facing away from the Seraph.

It only registered that he was supposed to be looking for Delia after five minutes of solid zoning out, but by that time, she was gone. Kratos spun around and dashed for the woods. He couldn't let that _monster _get ahold of her. It was time he delt with it once and for all, like he should've done four-thousand years ago…

* * *

Me: Yes! Finally! Thtey kissed. This has to be _the_ slowest fic on the whole website. Now there's actually something to review about, so please review! Do you want to know what my review/reader ratio is? 3/100. If all one-hundred off you reviewed, I would be the happiest girl on the planet, so pwease review! Oh, and think of this as the finale of a season for a T.V. show, but with not nearly as long a wait between the seasons. I'm just going to work on my self insert and A Past Stained Scarlet for a while, so I wanted to leave you with something worhtwhile in the meantime. And also PLEASE visit the forum. Without any more new videogames to distract me, all I do all day is check reviews every two hours so I don't have to do the stupid "Are you human?" thing. See, I have no life except fanfiction, that's why I'm addicted to reviews.


	30. IMPORTANT NOTE AND RANT! PLEASE READ!

Okay, so this is a rant/authors note, but please please PLEASE read it. It contains **important** information concerning the story and a few reviewers.

First, let me give you the story. I was browsing my inbox for a conformation e-mail from a music website when I happened across a review alert. At first I was ecstatic, until...

_A note to readers._

_I'm taking this story and rewriting it. I have gained ladydragon's permisson, as such I will rewrite this story but a bit different._

_Aurora will not be the only OC._

_There will be a Tethe`alla Point Of View with my OC._

_He will follow Sheena for her mission to kill Colette._

_He will be a Magic-Sword Master._

_He will be on par with Kratos' HUMAN based abilities._

_Wields a Katana and wears an Armored Gauntlet._

_Is from the same background as Aurora._

_Raine will not be OOC. (More Logical)_

_Look for it!_

_, Midnight Blue Cross_

Okay, first of all, I'd like to let everybody know, LIKE HELL I GAVE THIS PERSON PERMISSION! In fact, I haven't even logged on in months, and (luckily) I found out about this through my regular e-mail, so there's no possible way for them to have had my permission. And by the way, my name is DRAGONLADY _NOT_ LADYDRAGON! If you're going to lie you should at least have the dignity to spell my penname correctly. Also, every single faithful reader I have had (and who I dearly appreciate) knows that someone else tried to pull this off, and I raised hell. Firstly it's pathetic to lie, and you did it poorly at that. Secondly, nobody likes a plagarist! NOBODY! No decent person would advocate the embezzlement of someone else's intellectual property! It's pathetic that you can't come up with an original idea on your own, but that you have to expound upon an innocent author's material. Yeah, yeah you made up the man traipsing around with Sheena, but everything else belongs to me and me ONLY!

*Sigh* Alright, instead of shoving you a jumbled mess, let's take this review point by point shall we?

1. _A note to readers. __I'm taking this story and rewriting it. I have gained ladydragon's permisson,as such I will rewrite this story but a bit different***ly*.**_

**The thing that irks me the most about this point is that it is a flat out lie, and it's a blatanly obvious one because seriously, ladydragon? You read all twenty-something chapters of my story and you STILL don't know what my penname is? Not only does it show your slopiness, but it reveals just how careless you are. You mustn't be very serious about writing ANYTHING at ALL if you didn't check it for one sliver of plausibility. Also, learn the difference between adjectives and adverbs! Get some brains or get out!**

2. _Aurora will not be the only OC._

**Uh... HELLO! Aurora _wasn't_ the only OC. Remember Delia? Did you even read the story, Or did you just scan it for something to gyp?**

3. _He will follow Sheena for her mission to kill Colette. __He will be a Magic-Sword Master. __He will be on par with Kratos' HUMAN based abilities. __Wields a Katana and wears an Armored Gauntlet._

**Well, looky here, I guess you _did_ have you OWN OC in mind, you just needed someone else's characters and story to boost him. You should've written a story about whoever _He_ is and just left Aurora AND Delia in peace.**

4. _Is from the same background as Aurora._

**Hm... I'd like to know how you know what Aurora's background is considering I HADN'T REVEALED IT YET! AND I'M PRETTY SURE YOU CAN'T GUESS IT CORRECTLY!**

5. _Raine will not be OOC. (More Logical)_

**Dude, I _KNOW_ Raine is OOC. I stated it in the damn SUMMARY. THIS WAS MY VERY FIRST FANFICTION! What did you expect of me? An award winning novel? OH WELL. If you care so much about it why don't you go put her IN CHARACTER in your OWN story, not mine!**

6. _Look for it!_

**To all of my lovely readers, please, DO NOT LOOK FOR IT! Or if you do, find it and FLAME IT! I mean, how would you feel if someone _lied_ about having your permission to rewrite _your_ story and then advertised it to _your_ readers? In fact, I'LL look for it, and when _I_ find it, I'm going to report it AND it's author, _crossbluemidnight_.**

7. _, Midnight Blue Cross_

**crossbluemidnight**

Well, now that _that's_ over. Here is a less malicious side note.

In all honesty, I _have_ thought of re-writing this, and believe me, if it _is_ re-written (which it probably will be), it will be under the penname DragonLady24 which is ME! ME AND ME ONLY! The only reason haven't gotten around to it is because I have had _so_ much work to do between school, art, and drama club, but in my spare time I do look up tutorials on how to write in a more interesting fashion. A way that is more intriguing to read and doesn't sound like a lecture. When I write this next time, probably in the summer, I want it to be perfect. I want it to be a million times better than Pain Unending (which entails a title upgrade.) And, I want you to be able to enjoy the story more as well as gain closure for the almost year I've left you hanging. Honestly, my laptop is still broken, and our family computer has _no_ privacy. I can't write with people breathing down my neck! Hopefully I can get it fixed soon so I'll have more entertaining stories headed your way.

Thank you, thank you, thank you, _thank you_! all of my wonderfully faithful readers! I love you, and be on the look out for a new and improved story this summer!

Ciao for now~

DragonLady24 (NOT LADYDRAGON!)


	31. Note on Coop Story and Rewrite

Attention all readers! Since I haven't stretched my writing muscles for a while I have decided to do a co-op story with someone who actually ASKED to write with my characters. I don't know how much I'll be invovled in the story, but I think I need to get a feel for what I want Aurora's character to be like before I actually tackle re-writing Pain Unending. When I do I'll just slap it on to the end of the original so you can all just come back to the same old story. :)

Ciao,

DL24


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